ZAMBOANGA CITY–The Department of Trade and Industry in Region 9 (DTI-9) said all is set for the 3rd Consumer Fun Run, which will be held simultaneously on Sunday, Sept. 30, in all provinces.
Dr. Sitti Amina Jain, DTI-9 director, said the activity reflects the agency’s commitment to strengthen public’s awareness of their rights and interests, as well as responsibilities as consumers.
The fun run will serve as the kick-off activity of the Consumer Welfare Month observed every October.
“It is critical to have empowered consumers so as to help them protect themselves from any business malpractice and become active participants in advocating for consumer protection,” Jain said.
“Injecting fun in learning makes it all the more effective, thus, we have institutionalized the Consumer Fun Run as the kick-off activity of the Consumer Welfare month,” she added.
She said the activity is the agency’s “way of partnering with the Zamboanga City government with the Consumer Run being part of the Zamboanga Hermosa Festival for three straight years.”
Introduced in 2016 by DTI-9, the Consumer Fun Run was officially adopted by DTI central office in 2017 and is now a regular activity across the nation during the Consumer Welfare Month.
“We are proud to say that the Consumer Fun Run, which is now being observed all over the country, started in our region, and we share this pride to the people of Zamboanga Peninsula,” Jain said.
The fun run will consist of two race categories, the 8-kilometer run and the 5-kilometer run representing the eight Consumer Rights and five Consumer Responsibilities.
According to DTI, the eight consumer rights are: the right to basic needs; right to safety; right to information; right to choose; right to representation; right to redress; right to consumer education; and, the right to healthy environment.
The five Consumer Responsibilities, on the other hand, are: Critical Awareness; Action; Social Concern; Environmental Awareness; and, Solidarity.
Last year, over 3,000 participants from the different provinces and cities in the region joined the activity. It was the biggest number of participants among all the regions in the country, as reported by DTI central office. (Teofilo Garcia, Jr/PNA)
