Trending 
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed drugs worth an estimated N100 billion, including expired, falsified, controlled, unregistered, and banned medicines. The drugs were confiscated from Lagos’ Idumota Open Drug Market during a three-week enforcement operation, which concluded on Saturday.
The destruction took place at the Lapite Dumpsite in Moniya, Ibadan, Oyo State, where the seized products were incinerated. In a statement shared on its X handle, NAFDAC also revealed that multiple suspects were arrested during the operation, and those found guilty will face legal sanctions.
The enforcement campaign, which began on February 10, targeted major drug distribution hubs across Nigerian cities. During the operation, NAFDAC sealed over 3,000 shops in Idumota and evacuated 27 trucks of fake medicines from the market.
NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, stressed the importance of these efforts to eliminate harmful and unregistered drugs from the nation’s pharmaceutical supply chain, protecting public health in the process.
Furthermore, Prof. Adeyeye has called for stronger penalties for those involved in counterfeit and illicit drug trade, urging the National Assembly to speed up amendments to relevant laws. She has advocated for life sentences and even the death penalty for offenders, citing the tragic loss of lives, including children, due to counterfeit drugs.
In addition to the Idumota operation, NAFDAC’s enforcement teams raided the open drug markets in Aba and Onitsha, where they uncovered illegal drugs such as counterfeit contraceptives, fake antibiotics, and vaccines, including Yellow Fever and Measles vaccines. Other items seized included improperly stored Oxytocin and unregistered narcotics.
