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DTI steps up price and quality monitoring of school supplies in NCRWith classes starting in a few weeks, the DTI-National Capital Region (DTI-NCR) has stepped up its on-going monitoring activities another notch in Metro Manila. DTI Assistant Secretary Angel L. Pelayo reported that a total of 22 stores and 153 school products, including pad papers, notebooks, and pencils, were monitored. She noted that there was no significant increase in prices of school supplies, with some items even selling at lower prices from a year ago. "Our monitoring shows that prices of school supplies decreased by P .25 ? P 4.25 from last year's figures," Pelayo added. "The DTI-NCR will continue to monitor the prices of school materials in the following weeks to ensure that no retailer would take advantage of the season to unjustly raise their prices." Assistant Secretary Pelayo also advised consumers to be watchful of the school items that they buy following reports that various counterfeit products (such as fake Mongol pencils) are being sold in the market. To address this, the DTI has released a list of developed Philippine National Standards (PNS) for the composition, properties, performance and labeling of school materials to help that public make sure that they buy quality products. "It is of utmost importance that the quality and safety of these school supplies be checked to assure consumers of safe and quality products in the market," explained Pelayo. She explained that non-conformance to existing quality standards and labeling requirements is a violation under the Consumer Act, and this can be used by a consumer against the school supplies manufacturer or retailer as basis for filing a complaint. School supplies covered by Philippine National Standards are crayons, wood-cased black lead pencils, pencil sharpeners, writing chalk, bond paper, notebooks, grade school pad, ruler, white board marker, correction fluid, paper clips and glue. Monitoring teams from the DTI-NCR have been making the rounds of stores all over Metro Manila during the summer break to make sure that substandard and fake items do not find their way into children's school bags come June. (end)
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