Make control more permanent

Memories are still fresh on the sledgehammer of the Senior Divisional Officer for Mfoundi that fell on a good number of counterfeited electronics in application of the decision of the Yaounde Court of First Instance.

Several fake telephone receivers were destroyed and scores of imitation television receivers as well as DVDs demolished.

This was one of the giant steps taken by the administration to scale down the expansion of counterfeited goods.

The wish of every Cameroon especially those who have suffered the consequences of fake products was to see the fight eternalised.

While questioning why such influx should continue in spite of the measures taken to stop it, it is important to note that all this is the result of the porous nature of the borders.

Most of the products seem to come from the Asian continent where all quality of products are produced to suit all strata of the population; cheap things for poorer people and more expensive ones for richer communities.

It is true that the demand for the fake goods keeps rising and many people who go for them especially those who are aware argue in their favour blaming the situation on the weak purchasing power of the population.

The question now is whether or not all that is demanded by the population be authorised.

Frozen chicken for instance was in high demand but the government stopped it and national production took over and successfully met up with demand.

In effect, the invasion of the market by counterfeit goods, most of them cosmetics, pharmaceutical and food products, is a big threat staring the country at the face. The consequences are far reaching if nothing is done to halt the phenomenon.

However, the situation can still be reversed provided a practical strategy is adopted and made more sustainable. A phenomenon of this nature that proves to be resistant calls for fight that must be made permanent.

This means that the authorities must not wait for the products to enter the country and fall into the hands of the retailers or wholesalers before taking action.

Since it is proving almost difficult to nip the fake goods in the bud, it becomes necessary to intensify control at all the stages through which the products pass.

This entails positioning controllers at the borders, at ports of entry, at the airports and on highways among others.