Olushola Omogbehin
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has seized 277 cartoons of fake and unregistered malaria drugs worth over 1.2 billion in Lagos.
This was disclosed by the Director of Investigation and Enforcement, Martin Dotun Iluyomade who lamented that despite efforts by the agency to rid the country of fake drugs, immoral traders still import counterfeit drugs into the country for the consumption of innocent members of the public.
According to him, the drug which was intercepted in a warehouse along Ilasa-Oshodi was concealed in a cartoon of Diclofenac Potassium enteric coated 50mg and was manufactured by Shanxi Tianyuan Pharmaceuticals Group in China.
In his explanation, the recent discovery by the agency was part of its ongoing nationwide efforts to rid the country of fake and unregistered drugs which NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye with support from the Presidency and Health Ministry, was committed to.
Iluyomade noted that the interception had prevented about 500,000 Nigerians from taking the fake anti-malaria medicine.
“This enforcement action started before today. It’s a follow-up of enforcement operations launched early this year by NAFDAC in Lagos, Aba and Onitsha.
“The container that concealed this unregistered drugs was trailed from Apapa, where it was declared to contain spare parts but our operation team lead by Mrs Florence Uba, a Deputy Director tracked container to a warehouse.
“A carton of the concealed malaria drugs contain 18 packs, with 100 sachets in each of the packs. Ordinarily, you will think what is inside the pack is Diclofenac, a pain killer but opening the pack, we saw something else and this raised their curiosity.
“Imagine the number of doses we have here, and how many households would have taken these doses, thinking they are taking malaria tablets in this country,” he said.
He further said that investigation revealed that the person behind the importation had relocated from Onitsha to China after NAFDAC clampdown at the Onitsha drug market.
He however assured Nigerians that NAFDAC would pursue the matter to its logical conclusion and bring all those involved to book.
