Durban - KwaZulu-Natal Acting Judge President Mjabuliseni Madondo has called Tuesday's launch of the KZN Consumer Tribunal a great day for the province as this will address the plight of consumers.
The Consumer Tribunal was launched by the MEC for the Department of Economic Development, Tourism, and Environmental Affairs (Edtea), Ravi Pillay, and Commissioner of the National Consumer Commission, Thezi Mabuza.
The launch comes as World Consumer Rights Day is celebrated globally with the aim to raise awareness about consumer rights and needs while enforcing business compliance.
Professor Bonke Dumisa was appointed chairperson of the tribunal with Nomagciswa Cawe appointed as the deputy chairperson and Asha Sewpersad, alternative deputy chairperson.
Other members of the tribunal include advocate Noreen Nursoo, advocate Russel Hand, Phindile Ndlovu, Michelle Posemann, Preetha Dabideen and Lisa Williams de Beer.
“This is a great day in KwaZulu-Natal where we have a structure which will address the plight of the consumers, and I think and wish that the consumers will also co-operate with the structure in place, because if the structure in place is not being used it’s just a white elephant,” Judge Madondo said.
The Acting Judge President said that litigation costs in South Africa were high, to the extent that they were beyond the reach of many people, particularly the poor, and resulted in the system being unequal.
“With this tribunal, I think that things will change. This structure has to receive, hear, consider and decide complaints from the consumers because the consumers are the people who are in most instances short changed when the two parties enter into a transaction, because one is knowledgeable and the other is not knowledgeable,” Judge Madondo said.
He said that consumers had a right to be informed about “any product or anything” so that whenever they make a choice that choice should be an informed one. Judge Madondo said that with the formation of the tribunal they hoped issues of misleading advertising of products would also be addressed.
“In the event of a dispute arising between a consumer and a business you find that the consumers are stranded because they don’t know what is happening and they don’t have money, but with this tribunal in place it will assist to facilitate a mediation and reconciliation of disputes between these people,” Judge Madondo said.
He added he hoped that those appointed to the tribunal would be fair and impartial and that they would deal with the people without fear, favour or prejudice because if they were not independent it would be a problem.
The department (EDTEA) said that the launch of the tribunal means that KwaZulu-Natal will be able to prosecute consumer related matters in KZN, resulting in quicker consumer redress.
Mabuza said that they had already begun inducting members of the tribunal, with some having worked with the national court in Pretoria.
"Already in launching this they will start working. If there are cases that arrive they will be, in terms of their processes, allowed to start filing as of today, and then from there they can start hearing those matters. They will line up in terms of their processes, making sure that consumers know how to file, and putting the roll in place so that matters can be heard," Mabuza said.
Political Bureau