HISTORY OF WORLD CONSUMER RIGHTS DAY
It was on this day March 15, in 1962 that President John F. Kennedy made a speech to Congress in which he noted “everyone is a consumer with tremendous economic power, yet consumers’ needs and concerns usually go unheard.” After this speech in which Kennedy outlined the four basic rights of all consumers, the not-for profit group Consumers International was formed. This group partners with governments worldwide in order to educate and build awareness amongst consumers of the issues which most directly affect them.
WORLD CONSUMER RIGHTS DAY 2011
On Tuesday March 15, 2011 the Ministry of Legal Affairs, Consumer Affairs Division held a grand outreach event to commemorate World Consumer Rights Day. RHAND CREDIT UNION was invited by the Ministry to its annual celebrations as the theme for this year’s event was “Consumers for fair financial services”. The outreach event was hosted at the Brian Lara Promenade in the form of an educational fair.
RHAND readily agreed to attend this event as we believe in educating individuals on how to make sound financial decisions. We saw this as an opportunity to speak with members of the public about the importance of saving for retirement and unforeseen and/or inevitable events. In addition, we sought to enlighten them on the multiple benefits that accrue to members of the RHAND family. RHAND representatives were on site from as early as 10:00am distributing literature about our various products and services including our LOAN FACILITIES, RHANDeposit, SHARE SAVINGS, PENSIONS PLUS, FAMILY INDEMNITY PLAN, LinCU VISA DEBIT CARD, MEMBERSHIP SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME and our SOCIAL EVENTS.
Members of the public were also provided with our membership application forms, with many of them indicating a keen interest in RHAND based on our longevity (over 60 years in the industry) and our solid reputation as a sound financial institution that is not only profitable but one that invests prudently with our members’ interests in mind. The day was not without its surprises, as the Manager, Marketing and Member Relations and her colleague were introduced to the “BARACK OBAMA LOOK-ALIKE” comedian Reggie Brown who visited the RHAND booth on the Promenade during his tour of Port-of-Spain.
Overall, the event was quite a success for both RHAND and the consumers that patronized the open air event as we shared our financial advice to many individuals who truly deserve “fair financial services.”
