The Ministry of Economy and Trade continued its campaign to control violations of electric generators and protect the rights of consumers in northern Lebanon, as the inspection tours resulted in the issuance of 13 seizure reports and the confiscation of 11 generators, in addition to the seizure of about 52 tons of food materials inside a warehouse in Chekka.
The Ministry announced that the Department of Economy and Trade in the North, in conjunction with the State Security Service, carried out strict oversight rounds on generator owners in Tripoli and Minya, under the supervision of the competent judiciary.
The campaign resulted in the issuance of 5 arrest warrants against the owners of generators in the Abu Samra area, after it was found that they did not comply with the official pricing issued by the Ministry of Energy and Water, while the generators were confiscated for the benefit of the Tripoli Municipality.
Six arrest reports were also issued against the owners of illegal generators in Minya, and their generators were confiscated for the benefit of the concerned municipalities, based on a judicial signal.
The campaign included the municipality of Ain Yacoub in Akkar, where an arrest report was filed against it, as the party managing the generator, due to violating the official pricing.
In the port, the Economic Department filed an arrest report against the owner of a generator, after receiving a complaint and verifying his non-compliance with the specified price.
Thus, the 13 reports were distributed between 5 in Abu Samra and 6 in Minieh, a report against the municipality of Ain Yacoub, and a report against the owner of a generator in the port, while the confiscations were limited to 11 generators in Abu Samra and Minieh.
In a parallel track related to food safety, the Department of Economics in the North, with the support of State Security, raided a food warehouse in Chekka, Batroun District.
Inside the warehouse, the teams seized 2,080 bags, each weighing 25 kilograms, meaning a total of about 52,000 kilograms, without identifying signs explaining the nature of the products, their source, or basic information related to them.
The Ministry indicated that the quantity had been seized and an investigation had been opened to take a final decision regarding it, in light of the results of the audit, examinations and approved legal procedures.
The Ministry of Energy and Water issues monthly prices for private generators based on fuel prices, operating costs, and feeding hours, while the Ministry of Economy, competent agencies, and municipalities monitor the generator owners’ compliance with them.
The confiscation operations for the benefit of municipalities aim to prevent the continuation of violations and ensure that subscribers are not interrupted, in parallel with taking judicial measures against violators.
As for food labels, they constitute an essential element in consumer protection, as they are supposed to include data of origin, ingredients, production and expiration dates, and storage conditions, allowing the product to be tracked and its safety verified.
