The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has resumed enforcement of the ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and small plastic or glass bottles below 200 millilitres.

The agency clarified that it did not shut down any alcohol-producing company but only prohibited the sale of alcohol in sachets and small containers, citing public health concerns.

In a statement on Thursday, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye, said the move was aimed at protecting children, adolescents and young adults from the harmful use of alcohol.

“The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has resumed enforcement of the ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and small-volume PET or glass bottles below 200ml, in line with a resolution of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Agency’s public health mandate,” the statement read.

According to the agency, the widespread availability of high-alcohol-content beverages in sachets and small containers has made alcohol cheap, easily accessible and easily concealable, contributing to rising cases of underage drinking, addiction, domestic violence, road accidents, school dropouts and other social vices.

Adeyeye noted that placing warning labels such as “Not for children” on sachets and small containers had proven ineffective due to societal realities.

“Many parents do not even know their children consume sachet alcohol because the pack size is small, cheap and easily concealed,” she said.

She revealed that reports from schools had shown disturbing trends, including a recent case in which a teacher disclosed that a student claimed he could not sit for an examination without first taking sachet alcohol.

NAFDAC recalled that in December 2018, it, alongside the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with manufacturers to phase out sachet and small-volume alcohol packaging by January 31, 2024.

The moratorium was later extended to December 2025 to allow manufacturers to exhaust existing stock and reconfigure their production lines.

“The current Senate resolution aligns with the spirit and letter of that agreement and with Nigeria’s commitment to the World Health Assembly Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol,” she said.

Adeyeye stressed that the ban was not punitive but protective.

“This ban is not punitive; it is protective. It is aimed at safeguarding the health and future of our children and youth by not allowing alcohol in small pack sizes.

“The decision is rooted in scientific evidence and public health considerations. We cannot continue to sacrifice the well-being of Nigerians for economic gain. The health of a nation is its true wealth.”

She reiterated that only spirit drinks packaged in sachets and small PET or glass bottles below 200ml were affected, adding that NAFDAC still approved alcoholic beverages in larger pack sizes.

The renewed enforcement has sparked immediate reactions across industry, labour, and public spheres.

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and other stakeholders, including the Food and Beverage Tobacco Outgrowers and Bottlers (FOBTOB), have criticised the move as inconsistent and potentially damaging.

On January 23, members of the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria, Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress gathered at the Lagos office of NAFDAC to protest the ban.

They warned that the enforcement would displace no fewer than 5.5 million Nigerians from their jobs.

Some protesters described the policy as a serious regulatory misstep that fails to balance public health goals with economic realities—particularly in a country where low-cost sachet spirits remain popular among low-income consumers.

But NAFDAC called on manufacturers, distributors and retailers to comply fully with the directive, stressing that no further extension would be granted beyond December 2025.

The agency said it would continue to collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the FCCPC and the National Orientation Agency to intensify nationwide sensitisation on the dangers of alcohol misuse.

NAFDAC reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that only safe, wholesome and properly regulated products are available to Nigerians.

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A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, has granted permission to a former governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, to travel to Saudi Arabia to perform the 2026 lesser Hajj.

Justice Emeka Nwite, on Thursday, ordered the temporary release of Bello’s international passport, which had been in the custody of the court, to enable him undertake the religious exercise.

Bello is currently standing trial before the court over alleged misappropriation of funds in a case instituted against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The EFCC is prosecuting the former governor over alleged money laundering to the tune of N80.2bn, allegations which Bello denied when he was arraigned before the court.

The former governor, in an application dated January 20, and supported by a 24-paragraph affidavit deposed to by himself, sought the court’s permission to travel to Saudi Arabia for supplication.

Moving the application, his lead counsel, Joseph Daudu, SAN, told the court that the request was to enable the defendant travel to the Holy Land during the month of Ramadan to observe the lesser Hajj.

Daudu informed the court that Bello had not visited the Holy Land in over eight years, adding that there was a need for him to go and pray to God to deliver him from the charges brought against him by the EFCC.

Responding, the lead prosecution counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, said the prosecution would not oppose the request for the defendant to travel for the lesser Hajj, but stressed that it would not concede any of the trial dates already fixed by the court.

In a short ruling, Justice Nwite granted the application for the release of Bello’s international passport, which was deposited with the Registrar of the court.

According to the judge, “I have listened to the submissions of counsel in this matter and am minded to grant the application”.

Consequently, the court approved the release of the passport from March 13, 2026, for a period of 10 days, and adjourned proceedings till Friday, January 30th, for the continuation of the examination of the seventh prosecution witness.

Earlier in his testimony, PW7, Olomotane Egoro, a subpoenaed official of Access Bank, told the court of cash inflows from local government areas of Kogi State into the accounts of Fazab Business Enterprise and E-Traders International Ltd.

Egoro also told the court that several cash withdrawals were made from the accounts.

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British prosecutors on Wednesday told a London court that former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, lavished more than £2m (N4bn) at Harrods, allegedly using funds provided by oil executives who benefited from lucrative contracts with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

The prosecution said founders of energy companies awarded major NNPC contracts also paid the running costs of Alison-Madueke’s UK residence and covered the salaries of her domestic staff.

The payments, the court heard, included wages for a housekeeper, nanny, gardener and window cleaner at the former minister’s property.

According to prosecutors, the benefits formed part of a wider pattern of inducements allegedly offered in exchange for favourable treatment on oil and gas contracts.

Alison-Madueke, a former President of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, is standing trial at Southwark Crown Court on five counts relating to the acceptance of bribes in the form of luxury goods and the use of high-end properties owned by oil industry figures. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges, including conspiracy to commit bribery.

Jurors were told that the former minister maintained a lavish lifestyle in the United Kingdom, including the use of a personal shopper at Harrods, a service available only to Black Tier Rewards members who spend more than £10,000 annually.

Prosecutors alleged that over £2m was spent on Alison-Madueke’s behalf at the Brompton Road store, with several purchases made using payment cards linked to Kolawole Aluko and the debit card of his company, Tenka Limited.

“She was provided with a life of luxury in the United Kingdom,” the prosecutor said, adding that Alison-Madueke allegedly enjoyed the use of multimillion-pound properties, a chauffeur-driven car, private jet travel and £100,000 in cash.

The court was also told that about £4.6m was spent refurbishing properties in London and Buckinghamshire allegedly linked to her use.

Aluko, a petroleum and aviation magnate named in the Panama Papers, was previously investigated over allegations that he helped move millions of dollars out of Nigeria as kickbacks to Alison-Madueke. Prosecutors said he also held contracts with state-owned oil entities while seeking new ones.

“This case is about bribery in relation to the oil and gas industry in Nigeria between 2011 and 2015,” said Alexandra Healy KC, prosecuting.

“Those interested in the award and retention of lucrative oil and gas contracts provided significant financial and other advantages to Alison-Madueke.

“There is a strong public interest in ensuring that conduct in this country does not further corruption in another country,” she added.

Jurors were shown photographs of a Buckinghamshire property known as The Falls, bought in 2010 by Nigerian businessman Olajide Omokore, owner of Atlantic Energy.

The court heard that from late 2011, Alison-Madueke allegedly had exclusive use of the property, which included a cinema room, staying there several times and spending about six weeks writing a book. The costs, including about £300,000 in refurbishments, were allegedly paid by Tenka Limited.

Prosecutors further said that between May 2011 and January 2014, about £500,000 was paid in rent for two flats in central London occupied by Alison-Madueke and her mother, with company records allegedly showing that Tenka settled the bills.

Alison-Madueke is standing trial alongside oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, who faces one count of bribery relating to her and another of bribing a foreign public official.

Her brother, Doye Agama, 69, a former archbishop, is charged with conspiracy to commit bribery and is attending the trial by video link for medical reasons.

All three defendants have denied the charges. The trial, expected to last about 12 weeks, continues.

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