Authorities in Nigeria have closed down a Chinese restaurant in Lagos over its discriminatory policy against Nigerians.
The Haufei Restaurant and Mall was shut down Saturday for refusing
to serve Nigerians.
It
followed covert investigations at the facility by operatives of Nigeria’s
Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Committee (FCCPC) that found
evidence of discrimination against Nigerian citizens.
The
head of the FCCPC, Babatunde Irukera led the closure on the Chinese restaurant
and supermarket, local news portal The Premium Times reported.
“Two different people who went with me went in first and it was
very clear that they declined them service,” Irukera told The Premium Times.
“In fact, the chief security officer and the cashier at the restaurant admitted
that it is their policy not to sell to Nigerians.”
“Our law prohibits obnoxious
practices. It is obviously obnoxious to discriminate. They are a range of
options that regulators have, prosecution being the topmost of it depending on
the full context whether it was the first time or repeat, whether there are
other complex issues. We will decide within the spectrum.
“It might be that we will
penalize them administratively and ask them to take corrective measures and
then put them under supervision for a period of time to keep watching and see
that they follow through the corrective measures.
“But if their conduct is a pattern and something that is very
egregious then certainly we would consider prosecuting,” he added.
Some
Nigerians on social media were gobsmacked by the restaurant’s refusal to serve
locals.
The
Punch reported of one Folabomi who had shared a video of herself in front of
the eatery, saying: “So, my friends and I have been asked to leave this Chinese
establishment, a restaurant o, simply because we are blacks. In Nigeria!”
“Our only option is to take out, but we cannot
physically sit down and eat at the restaurant. As you can see, this has turned
me to a crazy person. I don’t joke with my food,” she also wrote.
-----PREMIUM TIMES
-----PREMIUM TIMES
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