CCP to facilitate chambers of commerce against competition issues: Rahat Kaunain Hassan

KARACHI, Jun 17 (APP): Competition Commission of Pakistan Chairperson Ms. Rahat Kaunain Hassan offered to exempt chambers of commerce from the fee charges, while registering formal complaints against competition issues.
The offer by the CCP’s chairperson was made at Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, during her visit on Friday.
She was accompanied by a team of his senior officers, according to the press release issued by KCCI.
During the session, members of KCCI brought several issues and competition related matters to the CCP’s notice.
KCCI leadership apprised the CCP team of different competition issues and sought its help in creating a level playing field, while removing entry barriers in the different sectors.
KCCI President Muhammad Idrees, Vice President Qazi Zahid Hussain, KCCI Managing Committee members participated in the advocacy session.
However, CCP Chief Ms. Rahat Kaunain Hassan said that the competition had imposed penalties of up to Rs 70 billion for different violations of the Competition Act on various sectors.
However, Rahat Kaunain Hassan maintained the recovery remains paltry due to the fact that most of the undertakings had challenged the CCP’s orders in the higher courts where the due process of judicial review is underway.
The real effectiveness of the CCP’s orders would be felt once the judicial review process is complete, particularly in the cartel cases, that call for prioritization for the harm it incurs to the economy, she added. \
CCP Chairperson further said that as an institution, the CCP was accountable for its mandate, but in the pending cases the review process has to take its course.
Ms. Rahat Kaunain Hassan said that against the general impression, the CCP was not a price regulator, but it only intervenes where the prices of goods and services were affected by anti-competitive practices, such as abuse of dominance and cartelization.
The main job of CCP is to make sure that markets were functioning in compliance with the competition rules and regulations, she held.
She informed that the informant reward scheme and leniency provisions were available which the business community can benefit from and help the CCP in identifying the anti-competitive issues.
She assured the CCP’s full support in resolving the competition issues and creating a level playing field.
Earlier, KCCI President Muhammad Idrees said that CCP undoubtedly played an important role in providing equal opportunities and a level playing field to the business and industrial community.
The efforts being made by the commission had led to not only improving the business climate to a certain extent, but also ensured that public was saved from unlawful profiteering, counterfeiting and sub-standard products, remarked the KCCI president.
Appreciating some of the major actions taken by CCP, he particularly mentioned that CCP took notice of unusual rise in prices of edible oil in 2020 and initiated inquiry against 110 edible oil companies that helped in stabilizing prices of this essential household products.
Muhammad Idrees requested CCP chairperson to arrange an awareness seminar at KCCI, wherein a large number of businessmen, industrialists and small traders will be invited so that they could better understand the commission responsibilities and functions.