THE NATIONAL Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has finally announced the reopening of the Onitsha Drug Market, and other adjoining markets, after close to one month of closure.
Martins Iluyomade, the South East zonal director of the agency, revealed this on Thursday, after a meeting between officials of the agency, officials of the Anambra State government and leaders of market unions.
He said that business would officially commence in the markets on Friday.
Other markets, including plumbing materials market, timber market, surgical materials market, science laboratory materials market and many others, were affected early last month when the agency closed down the market in its fight against illicit drugs.
Iluyomade who addressed government officials and leaders of the market before announcing the reopening said: “What is happening here goes beyond only Ogbogwu (drug) market, it extends to other markets around this area, and that was why we took the steps we did by closing down everywhere.
“I know the apprehension was much and people were asking why lock other markets that have nothing to do with drugs, and it was as if we were out to punish those who had nothing to do with drugs. We did not respond because we did not want to join issues, but we found drugs in all the markets we closed.
“What we found in other adjoining markets was just as much as we found in Ogbogwu market. We did what we did because if we did not, we would not cover the grounds we were able to cover.
“We had been here last year for an operation, but our men were beaten and even an officer of the federal Republic was stripped naked for doing his legitimate duty. We had to lock up everywhere because if we did not, there will be a collateral damage. This is a major drug market, and if something goes wrong here, drug supplies all over the country will be contaminated.
“We know that since FG was determined about sanitizing this market, if there was any attack on us, our security men would have reacted and the damage would have been high. We thanks Governor Soludo for his visit. When he heard what we did here, he called to express interest about the welfare of his people, and when we explained to him, he backed to sanitize the market. He later visited us and reiterated the same support as far as what we are doing is right.
“People were already bringing ethnic coloration into it, but I thank the governor for not listening to them. In fact, the governor said there was need for us to save us from ourselves because if you use fake drugs, it will kill you without asking your ethnicity.
“The DG of NAFDAC took this assignment as if her life depended on it, and everyday she kept calling to know the state of operations. NAFDAC has also committed a lot of resources into this and she has made a commitment for fake drugs to be exterminated in Nigeria.”
Speaking on the findings of the agency in the markets, the Zonal Director said: “It is saddening to see that we have people amongst us whose only way of making money is by destabilizing the country and killing people.
“We have confiscated over 50 trailers of fake and substandard drugs. We have many still in warehouse in town and we are coming after them. The volume of narcotics we saw here are enough to destabilize any nation. There is a link between the circulation of narcotics and insecurity. Check any country that there is insecurity and breakdown of law and order, you will see that narcotics is in high supply.
“This is a sad story the number of narcotics we have found here. The people dealing in it know the effect, but they are doing it because people say the sale of narcotics is more lucrative than cocaine.
“We have also seen people who deliberately go and bring substandard and fake drugs. People import tablets in nylon bags with no label and they will bring it here and put it in packs and put label on them for sale. We saw a lot of it. We saw medicine that had been banned as far back as 2007, but people are stocking it.
“Many of them were banned because they cause cancer, and new replacement produced, but people still stock them. That is wickedness. Another category is unregistered drugs. The volume of those medicines are usually small on the counter, but has large cache of them in warehouses outside the market.”
Iluyomade said even some genuine drugs are stored in manner that they lose their efficacy and even become harmful, far before their expiration date.
“The storage of the drug is also a problem. There are no ventilation in all the packing stores we visited. Medicine are suppose to be kept under certain weather where they maintain their effectiveness. Medicines are chemicals and even those who sell registered original medicines have had them expire long before the expiry date.
“All the packing stores are packed to the brim, locked with the biggest padlocks and left there without ventilation. We saw a drug for women in labour packed at plumbing materials market. The warehouse was full and hot, but the drug on its pack says store between 2-8 degree centigrade, but someone packed it in oven. So when people say what of some of us selling good medicine, we just laugh at them. Which good medicine are you selling?
“We must take our healthcare delivery seriously and that is what NAFDAC is doing. As an agency we are not out to make life difficult for you people, but we’re working with the mandate given to us as an agency.
“We have pasted papers on some shops and those who find such must know that they have invitation and they must come to our office to see us. I want to tell you that markets will be opened from tomorrow. We have met your union people and the leaders must ensure they come to us when they find something untoward.
“If anything like this happens again, we will still close this market. Again, we will never have a case where our officials will be attacked. It must not happen again, if it does, we will close the market.”
Iluyomade said even though the market will be reopened from Friday, about 4,000 shops will remain locked until their owners come to explain certain drugs found inside.
Leaders of the market unions expressed happiness about the news to reopen the markets, while pledging to work with the agency to identify traders who insist on dealing in illegal drugs.
Chairman of plumbing materials market, Mr Chikodili Ejiofor expressed shock about the quantity of drugs found in his market. He said: “I don’t deal in drug, my market is for plumbing materials and I was shocked at the number of drug found in my market. Tramadol, codeine and many other were all found in the market to my amazement.
Also, Ogbogwu Market chairman, Mr Ndubuisi Chukwuleta said: “Before now, we were trying to check fake drug in our own capacity, but now that NAFDAC has come in, our duty is quite less. We will always report to you. We will tell neighbouring markets to put their ears on growing and ensure that they help us. This suffering our members are into, only a few people caused it for us, but thank God you are here now.”
Anambra government officials at the meeting, Special Adviser to the governor on pharmaceuticals, Dr Nnadozie Godwin and the commissioner for health, Dr Afam Obidike both pledged the support of the state governor in cleansing the market of fake drugs.
Obidike said: “Sanitizing drug trade saves more lives than what hospitals save. The lives that NAFDAC has saved so far through this exercise is more than what hospitals save. We thank the traders for cooperating with them the day they came because if it wasn’t so, maybe the outcome would not have been what we have seen today.”