The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Friday, busted a number of constructing supplies and plumping outlets housing substandard and counterfeit medicine at Onitsha drug market positioned at Bridge head market, Onitsha, Anambra state.
The company, which started operation on the drug market since February 10, 2025 as a part of ongoing efforts to sanitise the nation of substandard and expired medicine attributable to its well being implications to Nigerians, has already shifted over 10 vehicles loaded with the unhealthy medicine.
Blueprint reporter who was a part of the crew on Friday, reported that in the course of the train, merchants have been allowed to open their outlets in addition to noticed because the company inspected and recovered tons of medication found to be illicit, pretend and expired parked of their outlets which they seized and loaded into two vehicles prepared for shifting.
It was additionally discovered that a number of outlets, markets and business banks beside the drug market have been transacting their companies opposite to social media reviews that real merchants have been prevented from participating in transactions.
Addressing the media, the Director-General, NAFDAC, Professor Moji Adeyeye, represented by the company’s director in South-east zone, Dr Martins Iluyomade, stated they have been stunned to find that some merchants turned constructing supplies outlets to warehouses for storing counterfeit medicine.
Adeyeye, who expressed displeasure that the a lot of the merchants have been denying not being conscious of their colleagues dealing on the confiscated counterfeit medicine, assured the general public that the train can be sustained with a view to safeguard lives of the individuals.
“We are not preventing genuine people from doing their businesses. We are not here to witch-hunt or inflict pains on the populace. We are only carrying out this national assignment across drug markets in Nigeria for the good of the whole nation. We don’t have to allow a few people to jeopardise the lives of others. We don’t want any casualty. Do not listen to the social media war orchestrated by some of the cartels to stop our good work,” she appealed.
Responding, the Chairman, Building Materials Traders Association, Chief Ejiofor Chikodi, who was supervising the train, stated he was additionally stunned that their members have been equally packing cartons of medication of their outlets.
On find out how to forestall it future prevalence, Chikodi stated he had met with store house owners and different stakeholders of the market and it was resolved that henceforth anybody present in possession of counterfeit medicine out there would pay a wonderful of ₦500,000, amongst different issues.