Lagos Shuts 27 Illegal Drug Stores Selling Unethical and Expired Drugs

Lagos Shuts 27 Illegal Drug Stores Selling Unethical and Expired Drugs

The Lagos State government through its Task Force on Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods, has sealed 27 illegal drug stores across the state.

Members of the task force drawn from the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC); Pharmacists’ Council of Nigeria (PCN); Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN); Federal Task Force on Fake Drugs and the State Rapid Respond Squad (RRS), went round Ojo local government area on Monday.

Special adviser to the governor on Primary Health Care, Dr Olufemi Onanuga told newsmen that 27 out of the 31 outlets visited in Ojo-Igbede, Ajangbadi, Ketu-Ayetoro, Iyana Era, Iyana Iba and Isashi as well as Seriki, Kembiri, Iba, Adaloko and Okokomaiko – all in Ojo local government area of the State – were sealed off for various offences.

Onanuga accused the affected drug stores of engaging quacks to man community pharmacies and operating beyond the scope of licensed patent medicine shops.

The special adviser said many of the stores were selling unethical products and dispensing drugs to unsuspecting citizens without prescription from qualified medical personnel.

The drug stores were were also accused of operating in unregistered premises, displaying and storing drugs in environments capable of compromising the potency and integrity of the products and rendering them ineffective.

Onanuga also lamented that though some of the stores visited were registered, 95 per cent 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.

He added that some of the premises engaged in illegal clinical practices such as patient admission and drip setting of intravenous infusions.

“This is unacceptable. We as a government will do the needful in terms of enforcing the law and sanctioning erring operators,” The Nation quotes him to have said.

He added, “The sealing of these pharmacies and patent medicine stores was in accordance with the provisions of Chapter C34 of the Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods (Miscellaneous Provision) Act of 1999, No. 25.“