The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Friday affirmed that it would not succumb to pressure in its efforts to eliminate banned, counterfeit, unregistered, and harmful drugs from the country.
NAFDAC Director-General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, made this known at a press briefing in Lagos while responding to allegations that the agency compelled some traders to pay ₦700,000 for a service they were unaware of.
She explained that the agency’s recent enforcement operations in the open drug markets at Idumota, Aba, and Onitsha led to the seizure of harmful and banned drugs worth over ₦1 trillion a move aimed at protecting public health.
Adeyeye clarified that the fees imposed were investigative charges, which were reduced after consultations from ₦5 million to ₦200,000 for the sale of unregistered drugs, and from ₦2 million to ₦500,000 for storage violations.
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She added that over 2,500 traders operating 3,500 shops in Onitsha’s Ogbogwu market have since resumed business after paying the charges and removing non-compliant drugs from their shops.
The Director-General emphasised that the sealing of shops and the imposition of charges followed due legal process.
“These are officially gazetted charges of the Federal Government,” she stated. “NAFDAC will not yield to pressure or reopen any shops that have not met our compliance requirements.
“We cannot ignore the dangers posed by fake and substandard medicines, which have claimed the lives of countless innocent women and children.”
Adeyeye alleged that those spreading misinformation about the agency are traders who imported banned narcotics and refuse to follow regulations.
She urged Nigerians not to politicise the matter, affirming that NAFDAC would continue to act in the national interest.
She assured the public that the agency remains committed to its mandate of safeguarding public health.
