In September 2010, Kia the Korean carmaker initiated a recall of more than 100,000 models which had been affected by defective wiring. The much-publicised recall forced the resignation of its chief executive Chung Sung Eun.

Local owners of Kia models were naturally concerned but Dana Motors, Kia’s sole franchise holder for Nigeria, reassured its customers and issued a statement stating that “the models of affected Kia cars being imported into Nigeria do not come with the optional features that the safety issue has been traced to”.

However, an investigation by this newspaper reveals that faulty Kia cars were actually shipped into the country and that Dana’s unethical handling of the issue has exposed Nigerian motorists to danger as some owners of the affected models are still ignorant of the electrical problems.

While Dana’s chief executive Jacky Hathiramani had said that “the recall did not affect Nigerian shipments”, an official of Kia Motors contradicted his claims when contacted by this newspaper. Michael Choo, the company’s spokesperson confirmed that 1 Kia Sorento and 63 Kia Mohave models in the Nigerian market had been affected and that while Dana had fixed 41 units, it was still “contacting” the remaining customers.

Unlike Toyota Nigeria Limited which extensively advertised the details of its recall in February 2010, Dana lied about the recall and put consumers at risk.