Osun advises SON on fake products

Director-General, Standards Organisation of Nigeria, Dr. Joseph Odumodu

The Osun State Government has urged the Standards Organisation of Nigeria to increase the tempo of its crusade against fake and substandard products in the market.

The Deputy Governor of the state, Mrs. Titi Laoye-Tomori, said this in Osogbo on Tuesday at the presentation of the Nigerian Industrial Standard certificate to the management of the Osun State Investment Company Limited, producers of Essence table water, by the SON.

Laoye-Tomori said the incidence of fake and substandard products should be tackled with a renewed zeal in order to safeguard the lives of the people.

She reaffirmed the commitment of the Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s administration to making the state the economic hub of Nigeria.

The deputy governor explained that the government would transform Osun from its present civil service status to a viable industrial state through the establishment of companies to produce products that conformed to the standards set by the SON.

Laoye-Tomori said, “The best way to make Nigerian goods compete favourably with goods from other parts of the world is by ridding the nation of fake and sub-standard products.

“We are urging the management and staff of the SON to double their efforts in promoting quality.  Producers and importers of fake and sub-standard products should be arrested, prosecuted and punished according to the provisions of the law.”

The Director-General, SON, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, who was represented by the head of the organisation in Osun State, Mr. Dele Ayeni, said the presentation of the NIS certificate to OSICOL signified that Essence table water had been tested and certified by the SON and found suitable for consumption by Nigerians.

The Managing Director, OSICOL, Mr. Bola Oyebamiji, commended the efforts of the state government towards the resuscitation of the company.

He said that the company was in a bad shape when the current administration assumed office in 2010, adding that its turnaround had made it to emerge as a viable contributor to the state’s internally generated revenue.