NAFDAC Destroys N205 Million Fake Drugs in Calabar

by crossriverwatch admin

The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, on Thursday in Calabar burnt fake and expired drugs worth N205, 115, 000. 00.

Mr. Paul Orhi, the Chairman of NAFDAC who carried out the exercise said the items destroyed are comprised of substandard, counterfeit, spurious and fake medicines, foods and other regulated products seized by various agencies in the South South states.

Mr. Orhi who was represented by Mr. Macdonald Garba, the agency’s Director of Investigation and Enforcement declared that NAFDAC has adopted a holistic strategy towards combating fake drugs prevalence which transcends local boundaries in order to safeguard the lives of Nigerians who innocently consume these fake products.

“International and local collaboration with relevant agencies, public enlightenment campaign, deployment of cutting edge technology such as Truscan, Mobile Authentication System, Minilab, Radio Frequency Identification and Black Eye Technology to coordinate anti fake drug prevalence in Nigeria have yielded significant results”.

According to the NAFDAC Chairman, the creation of rapid response system to report fake and counterfeit drug cases, surveillance and enforcement operations in the seaports, airports, borders and other unidentified routes used by smugglers and the upgrading of laboratories to meet international standards have also assisted in curbing the incidences of fake drugs in the country.

“We are burning these drugs to stop them from being re-injected into the market by fraudulent people who do not have any regards for the health of our people.” Orhi said.

Some of the drugs destroyed, he said, were donations from Nigerian Pharmaceutical Society, and other agencies to governments in the South South states of Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Rivers States which were fake and counterfeit and called on the fake and counterfeit drug peddlers to have a rethink and change their evil ways for the betterment of society.

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