Lagos Shuts Down 1,253 Illegal Pharmaceutical Shops

Officials of the Lagos State Taskforce on Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome  Processed Foods has shut down 1,253  illegal pharmaceutical outlets at Idumota,  Lagos Island area of Lagos State, South West Nigeria.

The taskforce swooped on the illegal outlets at Idumota very early in the morning on  Thursday. The outlets did not have the necessary certificates from the state  government before opening such outlets.

The outlets were shut down at Iga Iduganran Street, Church Street, Dosumu Street,  Ashogbon Street, Obun Eko Street, Orisan Street up to Idumota and its environs.

Dr. Jide Idris, Commissioner for Health disclosed that the closure of the illegal  outlets was necessitated by the persistent defiance of government’s stipulated  regulation on drug production, importation, manufacture, sales or display for sale,  hawking, distribution, adulteration and possession of drugs by illegal operators in  the state.

‘The closure is part of government’s efforts at ridding the state of fake,  substandard and illegal drugs’ operators and outlets as well as ensuring that high  drug quality through sanitation and streamlining of drug distribution system in the  state,” he stated.

The state taskforce carried out the raid in conjunction with representatives of  Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria, PCN; Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN;  National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC; Pharmaceutical  Inspectors Committee, PIC; State Ministry of Health and the Nigerian Police Force.

Idris said the raid was carried out in compliance with the provision of Number 25,  Chapter C4 of the Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods  (Miscellaneous Provision) Act 1999.

According to him, despite the danger posed by the nefarious activities of illegal  operators of patent and proprietary medicine and pharmaceutical stores in the state  as well as the provisions of the law as stipulated by the Pharmacists Council of  Nigeria Act of 1992 and the Registration of Pharmaceutical Premises Regulation Law  of 2005, people still chose to stay on the wrong side of the law.

“I urge all residents of the state to always purchase their drugs from a  duly registered pharmacy or patent medicine store which can be identified by a  signboard indicating that such pharmacy or patent medicine shop is duly registered  and licensed,” he said.

—Kazeem Ugbodaga