SON destroys sub-standard tyres in Enugu

Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has destroyed sub-standard tyres worth over N50m in Enugu.

The tyres were standard as at the time they were produced, but due to stuffing of the tyre by the importer, they became sub-standard.

Addressing pressmen briefly before destroying the tyres, the director of inspectorate and compliance directorate of SON, Obiora Manata who represented the Director General (DG) of the agency, Mr Osita Aboloma said the agency is fighting to stop selling of substandard products in Nigeria.

Mabata stated that the concealment was confiscated at Port Harcourt when it was about to be moved to the market adding that it has gotten all the legal requirements according to the act to destroy the products.

He condemned the act of some importers who indulge in stuffing tyres by using mechanical force to squeeze more than four tyres and rammed them into a slightly bigger tyre instead of bringing them the way they were produced.

He said: “First of all, I want to welcome all of you here today, especially our sister agencies on behalf of our DG SON. It shows the level of collaboration and corporations we have with our sister agencies, because the fight against sub-standard product is not something one can do alone. So, we are fighting in synergy with police, DSS, Police and other security agencies.

“Today we are here to carry out a very important exercise in the nation: to destroy some substandard products, tyres. We have a number of substandard tyres which is not good to be used in your vehicle and that’s why we brought them here for destruction.

“Ordinarily, the tyres as manufactured were not sub-standard. But because of the act of stuffing and unstuffing, the tyres became substandard. Stuffing is when you squeeze and ram into another bigger tyre. They have purpose of doing this to cheat the government and when you do this stuffing, you cause both visible and invisible damages to it. It will create a lot of dent and cause danger to the user and the owner.

“The position of the agency was to seize this kind of substandard products and destroy them. The products were intercepted when they were about to enter the country. That’s why I told you that we work in synergy with other sister agencies.

“If we confiscate, we take them to lab to check the standard, go to court and obtain court order and whatever the court says will be carried out by the agency,” he said.

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