Gatchalian: Online shopping apps selling fake items should be penalized

One of the effects of the pandemic is Filipinos shifting to online shopping instead of going to malls. But as fake goods proliferate, Senator Gatchalian is proposing that online shops should be held accountable for that.

File photo: Lazada app

To prevent fake goods on online platforms

According to Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, online shopping apps must be liable for selling counterfeit or fake items on their platforms. This action allegedly will increase efforts to put an end to those products which may cause harm to the health of Filipinos.

Shopee and Lazada are two of the biggest e-commerce sites in PH

For that said reason, Gatchalian told the source that the government needs to create a system that will require online shopping firms to ban shady sellers. He said in reference to Shopee and Lazada,

Right now it is self-regulation. They are self-regulating themselves and it is not working because marami pa ring nakakalampas (many still get past). There is no incentive for these platforms to weed out illegal items and unscrupulous sellers because they make money out of it also. Whatever we buy from online sellers, they get a cut.

Gatchalian's proposal states that online merchants and shopping platforms that will sell fake items will be required to pay a fine equivalent to 100 percent of the amount of the digital goods offered. 

In addition to this, platforms and sellers who did not submit complete shop and product descriptions will have a separate penalty that costs half a million to PHP 5M.

Lazada's chief executive officer Ray Alimurung explained that their company has been doing its job regulating its vendors. However, illegal goods sellers get past the system since there are about 50 million items sold on the app. 

As for Shopee, the company said that they have similar mechanisms on their app to stop the sale of counterfeit items.

Gatchalian still thinks that the e-commerce platforms are not doing enough regarding this issue.

What are your thoughts on this?

Via: ABS-CBN