LOCAL PRICES need to be policed now more than ever.
That call came from consumer rights advocate Malcolm Gibbs-Taitt in response to concerns that the newly-introduced National Social Responsibility Levy on imports created an opportunity for businesses to exploit Barbadians. He is calling for a “prices ombudsman” to be employed to monitor the cost of imports.
“It is now more important than before that we put [an end to] the exploitative measures that can be brought to us,” Gibbs-Taitt told the SUNDAY SUN, noting that some businesspeople had been misleading officials of the Customs and Excise Department over the years.
“The reason we need a prices ombudsman or commission is because there has been a history of business people going to shop overseas and purchasing items at one price. And I understand that some of them will ‘sell’ the items to themselves by way of some company that they may have organised in that country and of course, what you get is a different invoice that differs from the original invoice. (LT)
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