The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control on Thursday destroyed illicit, banned, substandard, and unwholesome drugs and pharmaceutical products worth over N55bn in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The Director-General of the agency, Mojisola Adeyeye, announced the exercise, which took place at a dumpsite in Moniya, Akinyele Local Government Area, as part of the agency’s routine mandate to prevent expired, substandard, and falsified medical devices and other spurious or unsafe NAFDAC-regulated products from re-entering circulation.
NAFDAC is tasked with safeguarding the health of every Nigerian and remains committed to eliminating substandard and falsified medical products, illicit drugs, unwholesome foods, chemicals, unsafe medical devices, and other regulated products.
Adeyeye’s message was delivered by the agency’s Deputy Director, Pharmaceutical Division, Investigation and Enforcement, Papa Lagos, Florence Ubah, who explained that the products destroyed included substandard and falsified medical products, unwholesome processed foods and food additives, unsafe cosmetics, counterfeits, and expired NAFDAC-regulated items seized from manufacturers, importers, and distributors.
She added, “It is important to state that the products destroyed today were voluntarily handed over by more than 70 compliant companies, non-governmental organisations, and trade unions to the agency. This is commendable. The estimated street value of the products being destroyed is N55,436,844,470.”
Ubah also thanked the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Army, Department of State Services, Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Nigeria Security Civil Defence Corps, and other stakeholders for their collective efforts in combating substandard and falsified medicines and other unwholesome regulated products.
The DG appealed to religious and community leaders, health practitioners, journalists, and all Nigerians to educate their families and wards about the dangers of patronising quacks and unauthorised medicine and food dealers.
This is not the first time counterfeit and banned medical products worth billions of naira have been destroyed in the state.
In November, NAFDAC also destroyed counterfeit, expired, banned, and unwholesome pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and food products valued at an estimated N20bn in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State.
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