Mojisola Adeyeye, the director-general of National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has vowed that the agency would not rest on its oars until Nigeria markets are rid of unwholesome food, falsified medicines, and dangerous cosmetics in order to safeguard the health of Nigerians.
She, however, commended the collaborative efforts of sister agencies like Standard Organisation of Nigeria, SON, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Department of State Services, DSS, amongst others towards the realization of NAFDAC’s mandate.
Adeyeye made the assertion in Gombe, the Gombe State capital, at the North East Zonal destruction exercise of fake, counterfeit, substandard, expired, and unwholesome products by the Investigation and Enforcement (I&E) team of NAFDAC.
Sayo Akintola, NAFDAC Resident Media Consultant, in a statement on Sunday quoted Prof Adeyeye as saying that the exercise was in line with one of the Agency’s strategies aimed at eradicating incidences of reintroduction of fake drugs and other seized spurious or and unwholesome NAFDAC regulated products from the Nigeria market.
The products destroyed were made up of substandard and falsified medicines, unwholesome processed food products, unsafe cosmetics, and other counterfeit regulated products seized from importers and manufacturers by various NAFDAC establishments in the North-Eastern part of the country.
Also included in the exercise were expired NADAC regulated products voluntarily handed over to the Agency by complaint companies, including GSK Pharma, Ogba, Lagos, and non-governmental organizations within the zone.
According to Prof Adeyeye, who was represented by the NAFDAC’s Bauchi State Coordinator, Mrs Dayilim Josephine, the estimated street value of the products destroyed was N515,732.587.
The products destroyed included various quantities of medicines such as antibiotics, herbal remedies, psychoactive, and anti-diabetic.
Foods such as noodles, palm oil, vegetable oil, ogogoro (local gin) non-alcoholic beverages, sachet water amongst others were destroyed.
Cosmetics such as creams, pomade, and chemicals such as fake insecticides, fertilizers were also destroyed. Medical devices such as disposable syringe, I.V given set, and PPE as well as imported falsified packaging materials for counterfeiting various NAFDAC regulated products.
Prof. Adeyeye expressed her happiness that the products destroyed could have found their way back to the markets with the resultant consequences.
The exercise commenced with reception of items from the North East zonal states to wit: Gombe, Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, Bauchi, and Taraba. A total of 240.15 tons were received from the North East states and additional 40 tons from GSK Pharma were received and destroyed. The heap of items received was doused with fuel and lighted with fire at noon on Saturday, May 23, 2021.
Meanwhile, the NAFDAC DG stated that while the country and indeed the world is battling with the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for her to reiterate to the members of the public the presence of counterfeit COVID-19 vaccines in the African continent.
Prof Adeyeye however, assured the general public of continued NAFDAC collaboration with other agencies and stakeholders in ensuring that the prescribed standards of identity, safety, quality, and efficacy of regulated products are met.
The formal setting ablaze of the heap of items was jointly performed by representative of NAFDAC DG, Mrs Dayilim Josphine; Mrs Sylvia Egwunwoke, Gombe State NDLEA Commander; and Gombe State Coordinator of SON, Mrs James Danlami Yakzum amongst others.
