……….Vows
to Sustain War against Fake, Substandard Drugs and Illegal Pharmacies
No
fewer than 21 pharmacies and patent medicine shops at Egbeda, Shasha,
Dopemu,Command, Idimu, Ipaja, Orile-Agege and Cement in Alimosho and Agege
Local government area of Lagos were sealed on November 21, 2017 by the Lagos State Task force on Counterfeit,
Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods for offences bordering illegal
operation, operating beyond scope amongst others, the State Government has
said.
Special
Adviser to the Governor on Primary Health Care, Dr. Olufemi Onanuga who
disclosed this in his office at Alausa, Ikeja recently while reviewing the
report of the operation by the Task force noted that the recent operation was
coming on the heels of the war being waged against fake drugs and illegal drug
shops.
Explaining
the reason for the closure, Onanuga explained that the affected pharmacies and
patent medicine shops indulge in the practice of operating without license,
engaging unqualified persons to man and dispense drugs to unsuspecting
citizens, operating beyond scope through sale of ethical products and
displaying and storing drugs in unconducive environments which compromise the
potency and integrity of the drugs product rendering them ineffective.
“Although
some of the pharmacies visited were registered, it is disheartening to note
that quite a number of them had no qualified pharmacists on ground to attend to
the public resulting in the display of expired drugs for sale to the public”,
the Special Adviser said.
Revealing
that some of the premises visited also engaged in illegal clinical practices
such as patient admission and setting of intravenous infusions, Onanuga said
that the practice is unacceptable and vowed that the State government will do
whatever is necessary to enforce the law and sanction erring operators.
He
noted that the sealing of these pharmacies and patent medicine stores was in
accordance with the provisions of Section C34 of the Counterfeit, Fake Drugs
and Unwholesome Processed Foods (Miscellaneous Provision) Act of 1999, No.
25.
“Licensed
patent medicine vendors are authorized to sell only drug products in their
original packs in approved pack size as produced by the manufacturing
companies. The law prohibits dispensing and wholesaling of drugs by patent
medicine vendors,” he said.
The
Special Adviser warned that the activities of the State Task Force on Fake
Drugs would not only be sustained, but intensified until operators in the
sector adhere strictly to the provisions of the law on the operation of
pharmacies and patent medicine shops, in order to safeguard the health of the
citizenry.
Onanuga
later explained that an investigative meeting would be held later in the week
at the Pharmaceutical Inspectorate Unit of the Ministry where members of the
Task Force would meet with the owners of the sealed premises to make further
inquiries on the status of the sealed premises and to notify them of the
procedures and appropriate conditions to be met for reopening in line with
government regulations and payment of administrative fee.
“Government
will not relent in its efforts to stop the inherent dangers associated with the
operations from unlicensed pharmaceutical outlets and drug shops and as such we
are re-energized to continue this on-going war against fake, expired and
substandard drugs being peddled by unlicensed and illegal premises. This closure
is thus part of the government’s renewed efforts to sanitize the drug
distribution system and curb proliferation of fake drugs in the State” he
stated.
The
enforcement and compliance raid by the State Task force on Counterfeit, Fake
Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods was carried out in collaboration with the
National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Pharmacists’
Council of Nigeria (PCN), Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Federal
Taskforce on fake drugs and the Police Officers from Environmental and Special
Offences Unit (Task Force) of Lagos Police Command.
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