The Abia government has hinted at amending the state’s law on expired drugs to allow for severe punishment and imprisonment of traders selling fake, expired, unregistered medicines and other products.

On Thursday, Governor Alex Otti gave a hint in Aba at a meeting with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control and representatives of Ariaria, Eziukwu, and Tenant Road markets.

The chairman of Aba South LGA, Anyanwu Obialor, and the director of the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria, Abia chapter, Ngozi Nzenwata, attended the meeting.

“To save yourselves, when you see something, say something, or these people, when found, will cause you to have your houses sealed while you go elsewhere to live for months awaiting the conclusion of investigations,” Mr Otti said.

The zonal director of NAFDAC, Martins Iluyomade, said the meeting was to announce the reopening of shops that were not found culpable in sales of illegal products or counterfeiting products, which were sealed.

He, however, said some of the shops sealed by the agency in the markets would not be reopened until the owners were found.

”There are conditions, however, which must be met by the traders whose shops were sealed before they can be reopened, and as soon as you meet those conditions, your shops will be reopened,” he said.

The NAFDAC zonal director regretted that the traders did not accept the training and lifeline of free NAFDAC registration offered to counterfeiters at the Eziukwu market to transform their activities into legal ones.

Meanwhile, Ngozi Nzenwata, director of PCN, Abia chapter, stressed the need for the state government to assist medicine dealers in getting a medicine mart or a wholesale coordinating centre to ensure proper regulation of sales of medicines in the state.

Mr Obialor decried people calling themselves traders and engaging in the sale of consumables that could cause death.

He promised to collaborate with the Abia government and NAFDAC to severely punish any culpable trader.

Mr Obialor disclosed that the council would revoke any shop found counterfeiting or selling expired products in the markets.

The market union leaders, Mike Okoro and Moses Ibe, for the Eziukwu market, James Nwogu for the Ekumi/Ariaria market, and Chimezie Ugwu for Tenant Road markets thanked NAFDAC and Mr Otti for reopening some of the shops earlier sealed.

They promised to help stop the counterfeiting and sales of illegal products while calling for consideration for the remaining shops not yet reopened. 

(NAN)