HIBAPRESS – Rabat
Ali Chtour, president of the Moroccan Association for the Defense of Consumer Rights, confirmed that a large number of citizens fall daily into repeated consumer errors that lead to the depletion of their purchasing power and their entry into unnecessary financial obligations.
Chtour explained, in a statement to the "HIBAPRESS" newspaper, that these errors are due to several overlapping factors, most notably the absence of consumer culture, as many do not know how to manage their budget or prioritize according to their purchasing power, which leads them to spend more than their income without realizing it.
Chtour, a member of the Moroccan University of Consumer Rights, also pointed out the weak knowledge of consumer protection law No. 31.08, despite the guarantees and rights it provides to the consumer, stressing that a large segment of citizens do not understand how to benefit from it when buying goods or signing banking and financing contracts.
Chtour mentioned that misleading advertisements and false offers play a large role in exploiting the consumer's ignorance, which prompts him to purchase products or services that he does not need at exorbitant prices. Also, the waves of rising prices have increased the imbalance of household budgets, especially in the absence of financial planning and the control of consumption priorities.
The president of the association pointed out that building a strong consumer aware of his rights and duties is not only an individual responsibility, but a societal project that requires the concerted efforts of the media and specialized associations, where the media plays a pivotal role in spreading awareness and awareness of methods of fraud and deception, while associations undertake to frame citizens, provide consultations, follow up on their complaints, and defend their interests through professional consumer windows spread in cities.
Chtour called for the inclusion of consumer education in school curricula, stressing that the aware citizen starts from school, and that every individual must acquire the minimum of financial and consumer culture, with the necessity of reading before signing, inquiring before purchasing, and verifying before trust.
Chtour concluded his statement by saying that the conscious consumer is the cornerstone in protecting society from fraud, deception, and unjustified price increases, and that the association will always stand by the consumer to guide him, defend him, and provide him with everything he needs to protect himself and his family.
