‘Prosecute offenders’ — south-east reps ask NAFDAC to reopen Onitsha market

The south-east caucus in the house of representatives has asked the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to reopen the Onitsha Bridgehead drug market in Anambra state.

NAFDAC recently sealed the market after it uncovered prohibited drugs hidden inside plumbing materials shops.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, Igariwey Enwo, leader of the caucus, said while the lawmakers condemn the “nefarious activities of unscrupulous traders and businessmen” involved in the production and distribution of fake, adulterated medications, the indefinite lockdown of the market is not the best approach to tackle fake drugs.

Enwo asked NAFDAC to prosecute the offenders rather than shut down the market, noting that the closure disrupts other business activities in the area.

“To say the very least, their activities not only imperil public health but have led directly or indirectly to loss of lives,” the lawmaker said.

“To a lesser extent, these death merchants are also economic saboteurs since their clandestine activities are not open to government scrutiny and taxation.

“Caucus hereby commends NAFDAC for their intervention in halting the unconscionable activities of these merchants of death all over the country.

“However, while we are mindful of NAFDAC’s statutory role in curbing and stamping out fake drugs in the country, we urge them to quickly arrest and prosecute those responsible for the production and distribution of these fake drugs.

“The wholesale and indefinite sealing of a market that caters for over 90 percent of the medication needs of the south-east and south-south regions may not be the best approach, especially when it is considered that many of the other traders in the same market are genuine businessmen and women.

“Therefore, to avoid a situation of visiting collective punishment on all the traders of Onitsha Bridgehead, which is currently in a state of lockdown, and considering the wider collateral effect of the lockdown on the health needs of the larger population, we urge NAFDAC to quickly resolve the situation by prosecuting the offenders sanitising the entire medical ecosystem, whether in Onitsha Bridgehead market or Aba, Lagos, or Kano.”

Enwo urged the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to intensify its fight against the importation and sale of counterfeit drugs.