Petrol stations, depots, busted for dishonesty
THE Department of Consumer Protection and Fraud Repression (CamControl) in Takeo province is preparing court cases against the owners of five petrol stations and depots in Donkeo town for irregularities in the quality and quantity of their petrol.
Department director Por Leang Kong said CamControl filed compl ai nts against the owners because they violated the Law on the Management of Quality and Safety of Products and Services.
“I will send the cases to court on Wednesday or Thursday. We had reminded them to respect the Ministry of Commerce guidelines many times, but they failed to comply. We will continue to take legal action against others if we find irregularities,” he said.
Leang Kong said the legal action was in response to public concerns about petrol prices, quantity and quality at stations and depots in the province.
The five stations and depots were among a total of eight that CamControl inspected in collaboration with local authorities on Monday. He said officials tested the fuel with the department’s mobile laboratories.
The CamControl report released on Monday said officials analysed the octane index of petrol and diesel and measured the fuel dispensed.
It said among the eight petrol stations and depots, only three met the department’s quality and quantity guidelines. Three others were not in compliance with the quantity, while the remaining two were not in compliance with either the quality or quantity guidelines.
None of the petrol stations and depot owners could be reached for comment on Tuesday.
Cambodian Investment Federation president Ley Sopheap, who also heads the Cambodian Pharmacists Association, welcomed the crackdown. Without legal action, he said consumers will continue to lose benefits while the image of other law-abiding stations and depots will suffer.
“I support such legal action to be taken against all non-compliant goods, not just petrol. Some shops use tricks to sell products that lack quality and quantity. If we are not aware, we will buy products that may affect our health,” he said.