The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed seized substandard, falsified, and expired products worth N1.367 billion.
During the exercise yesterday in Abuja, the agency’s Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said the destruction was a part of the NAFDAC’s commitment to ensuring public health safety and eliminating dangerous products from Nigeria’s supply chain.
The items, seized from various locations within the Federal Capital Territory and surrounding areas, included drugs, food products, cosmetics, and chemicals deemed unfit for human consumption.
Adeyeye, who was represented by a Director in the DG’s Office, Festus Ukadike, said NAFDAC had destroyed products worth over N120 billion last year.
She noted that the agency’s intensified efforts against counterfeiting cartels had led to significant successes, adding that over 6,000 bags of re-bagged rice were confiscated in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) from criminals.
She condemned such activities, stressing that NAFDAC has zero tolerance for counterfeit products and has launched investigations to ensure those involved face the full force of the law.
Also, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) destroyed containers laden with expired and fake pharmaceutical drugs.
The expired drugs worth several billions of naira were intercepted at various seaports and land borders by officers in the last one year.
Speaking in Lagos at the Alaro dumpsite, Epe, Lagos, the Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs, Enforcement, Inspection and Investigation, Timi Bomodi, said the destruction would be done simultaneously across the country.
Bomodi, also Chairman of the committee for the identification, isolation, evacuation and destruction of illegally imported pharmaceuticals set up by the National Security Adviser (NSA), said the next phase after Lagos is Port Harcourt, Calabar and Kano.
“This exercise cuts across the Federation. We’re starting here in Lagos, specifically with about 88 containers. We’ll also be going to Port Harcourt where we have over 20 containers, Calabar, then Kano. So, it cuts across the whole country’’.
