When I checked my favorite movie rating website, Rotten Tomatoes, I was particularly struck by the exceptionally high rating of the all-time Western cowboy classic, “The Good, The Bad, The Ugly”. The site, which rates movies through votes from the audience by the Popcorn meter and from professional critics by the tomato meter, aggregates the votes cast and shows an average percentage score. The popcorn meter and tomato meters, though not always tallying nor showing the exact same results, have a strong correlation. “The Good, The Bad, The Ugly” is one such movie, as both measurements reached a spectacular 97 percent rating. A story of three cowboys who are out to collect bounty money showed the moral dilemma within a society and thus a critique on the perception of good and bad, right and wrong.
I rate the movie the highest possible score, enjoying the power afforded me by the website in having a say that will impact the cumulative rating and exercising my power as a consumer. It in fact feels incredibly empowering to know that I indeed had a say on the movie’s rating on such an established and trusted movie rating site. I myself rely heavily on it before going to the cinema or watching on mobile and computer devices. The free access to express one’s opinion and exercise an impactful say really means a lot to me as a consumer of the movie industry. One does not feel so lucky every time, as reality is much more unforgiving to the consumer more often than not. Rotten Tomatoes, an online platform afforded me by the robust and well-developed US movie industry, is by no means representative of the prevalent situation in Addis and beyond in our nation, as the leverage of consumers to have a say on the goods and services they get is next to nonexistent. When it comes to consumer rights in Ethiopia, the “Reality really bites”.
A case in point is my experience with a friend of mine who was considerate enough to buy about a kilo of apples so we could enjoy them together. We were mindful of the overrated pricing per kilogram, but didn’t mind it as we anticipated enjoying the fruit and reaping the health benefits as well. But our delight and feeling of good appetite was short-lived after the apples were washed and presented for consumption. What seemed like a fresh product led us to a rude awakening as we sliced open the seemingly ripe apples, revealing a rotten interior, creating immediate frustration and disappointment. We started checking the other apples one by one and came across the same finding, though at varying degrees. Our loss was compounded by the fact that while expending an exorbitantly high price, we had no benefit to show for it, but rather shock and disillusionment.
It had taken quite a while between the time of purchase and consumption, so we deferred from pursuing the matter with the vendor who sold the apples to my friend. It was not the first occasion that I faced the issue of “BAD APPLES.” I experienced the exact same scenario on a couple of occasions while buying the fruit for my septuagenarian parents, which I did for the sole purpose of providing a healthy and nutritious refreshment. Again, the outcome of the spoiled fruit was a double taxation, in that it cost both financially and in failing the purpose of the expenditure. What is most concerning in the context of our local market is that getting a return and refund of spoiled perishable food items is unheard of. This is particularly true for fruits, for which it is very tricky to assess whether they are fresh or spoiled at the time of purchase.
Consumers are heavily reliant on the promises of vendors, who usually promise and assure until money changes hands and are entirely unwilling to entertain claims after the transaction is conducted. Giving samples can be equally tricky, as I was once offered a banana by a fruit vendor, which was fresh and tasteful. However, the batch I purchased based on the sample was almost entirely spoiled and unlike the prototype, once again emphasizing the unfair and unethical business practices by the vendor.
Online platforms like Google afford consumers some semblance of control and power over the transactions they conduct. I received a number of automated messages from Google for reviewing services received. I remember one particular case whereby I was extremely disappointed by the services of a museum in Addis and detailed my experience. The owner of the museum retaliated by defending their point of view, and the dialogue was publicly displayed for all to see. While the assertion of my complaint and the museum owner’s defense may be contentious and subjective, I appreciated the fact that the platform offered an opportunity to exchange views in a transparent and civilized manner, which will be quite useful for other consumers to relate and refer to.
Consumer protection watchdogs go to great lengths in the developed world, from setting up product rating websites to lobbying for legal and economic actions that sanction consumer rights, redefine narratives, ensure justice, and promote sustainability. In many instances, consumer rights associations define the quality, quantity, and nature of products offered to the market, at what price, and exercise a formidable amount of power. Their actions go as far as challenging big corporations, states, and even the very legal systems that govern their respective nations. In some cases, individual actions by extremist, vigilante-type consumer activists go to extreme lengths, bordering on vandalism.
Some consumer groups believe premium products that are lavishly and fancifully displayed in upscale urban centers in Europe and North America come at the expense of child labor, miserable workers who toil long hours in the most adverse conditions in South East Asia and the Indian subcontinent. A very good example is the extreme working conditions of garment industry workers in Bangladesh, which drew global attention as an abuse of human rights, a threat to the safety and well-being of poor workers, and a gross violation of fair compensation for work done.
Many consumer groups and individuals go as far as boycotting products, triggering legal and political action through lobbying, lawsuits, open demonstrations, and multiple other means at their disposal. Some extreme vigilantes go as far as sneaking into clothing stores and slipping notes especially prepared to convey to the end user customer the injustice endured to avail the product in the shop. This is done with the purpose of swaying public opinion and appealing to the conscience of the general public regarding the unfair practices deployed by corporations.
I remember a 2004 movie called “The Motorcycle Diaries”, depicting the life of Ernesto “Che” Guevara as he traversed the whole of Latin America with his friend Alberto Granado’s Norton 500 motorcycle, endearingly called La Poderosa, meaning the Mighty One. Both being graduating class medical students and a biochemist, respectively, were still far from the revolutionary activism Che was about to embark on in the following decades. During their trip, which starts from the hustle and bustle of downtown Buenos Aires through the Argentinian Pampas, to the Chilean Andes, to the historical castles of Peruvian Machu Picchu and the arid desert of Atacama, their adventure ends in the rainforests of Colombia. But the seeds of Che’s revolutionary fervor were evident as he Guevara became angry and confronted a lead miner at Chuquicamata copper mine for the ill treatment of the laborers. That was Consumer Watchdog 101, as the copper extracted from the blood and sweat of those poor workers ended up in industrial and precious electronics products.
Consumer rights are enshrined with extensive protection in many legislative frameworks in the developed world. The days of absolute power by the state and giant multinational corporations are over, as consumer rights groups, individuals, and lobbyists yield enormous power in all aspects of life. According to the publication by the Ethiopian Business Review magazine, dated July 2025, “In 2013, Ethiopia enacted Proclamation No. 813/2013 as a recognition and commitment to the protection of the rights of consumers. The purpose of this proclamation was to regulate trade competition and consumer protection. Named as trade practice, trade competition was regulated earlier by the Trade Practice Proclamation No. 329/2003.” While this may constitute a framework or basis for further development in protecting consumers, the reality on the ground is a far cry from the current global reality, with awareness, enforcement, and justice still at its infancy. Consumers keep getting ripped off their hard-earned cash for products and services that are overpriced, of inferior quality, and in meager quantities, produced in the most unethical practices, while producers and service providers continue with impunity. There is a chronic lack of awareness on the consumer’s side that it is well within their rights to demand a product or service that is commensurate with their investment.
During a recent visit to a well-regarded hotel with a colleague, we ordered papaya juice, which was priced at an unexpectedly high Birr 400 per glass. This pricing, considering the establishment’s modest rating, raises questions regarding the value proposition. The practice of charging exorbitant prices in Addis Ababa’s dining establishments appears to be widespread and lacks a clear economic justification. The prevailing Ethiopian cultural norm of deference among consumers may be contributing to this issue, as individuals may be hesitant to contest such pricing. This situation is concerning, as it allows for the exploitation of consumers through unjustifiable pricing practices.
To the delightful soundtrack score of Ennio Morricone playing in the background, a tense scene is played out in “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.” A magistrate is reading out the crime of the numerous crimes of “The Bad,” played by Eli Wallach, with the noose of the hangman’s rope around his neck and his feet barely holding on to his horse, which will kick off any minute for his execution.
The “The Good,” Blonde, played out by Clint Eastwood, is lurking in the bushes sitting on his horse and watching intently, pointing his gun outside the view of the crowd gathered for the event. Right before the execution is carried out, Blonde fires a precise and fateful shot, which breaks the hangman’s rope and lets the panicked horse drive “The Ugly,” who still had his hands tied, to the wilderness. But before the shot that cut the rope, a few shots were fired by Blonde, which took off the hats of the magistrate in an ironic and hilarious satire and a twisted sense of justice, taking matters into his own hands.
Consumers should take matters into their own hands and exact fairness, common sense, and justice that will allow them to have value for their money in return. The biggest and most effective power is that of the silent majority, the sleeping giant, the elephant in the room: the consumers! Once the consumers start to exercise their rights, the legal framework, executive and legislative state branches, and the economic system will complement what is already sanctioned but not implemented. The good, the bad, and the ugly will be filtered, and the consumers’ suffering will end.
Contributed by Bereket Balcha