The governor of Anambra State, Chukwuma Soludo has thrown his support to National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) over the closure of Onitsha Head Bridge Market following the discovery of fake drugs.
Soludo affirmed that counterfeit drugs which were globally banned were found right inside the market in large quantities.
Recall that NAFDAC had announced that it discovered fake drugs inside various shops in the market. The agency also said that its officials seized 10 trucks of substandard, expired and falsified pharmaceutical products within the popular Ogbo Ogwu market.
However, a former governor of Anambra State and the 2023 presidential candidate for the Labour Party, Peter Obi had described the closure of the entire market as an economic sabotage.
He decried the shutting down of the entire market which affected other businesses including rods, plumbing material, timber sales among others.
According to Obi, closing the entire market area is unjustifiable as millions of livelihoods of people who are not involved in trading of fake drugs have been gravely affected.
Contrary to Obi’s view, Soludo said the leaders of the affected market have confirmed the discovery of fake drugs by NAFDAC. He also described the discovery as shocking and at the same time disturbing.
In a post in X, Soludo said, “Right inside these shops were found cartons of counterfeit and controlled drugs, many of which had been banned globally.
“How these drugs, which have been banned globally and locally, are still being manufactured in India, pass through our various ports (sea and air), and find their way to our local drug markets remains a question only the relevant authorities can answer,” the governor stated.
Dismissing the narrative by those he referred to as “a few political actors” on the closure of the popular market, Soludo urged the Nigerian government to ensure that all loose ends in the supply chain are tightened.
In addition, the governor said that officials of his administration have been deployed on a search mission in the market to speed up the reopening of the area for other traders to commence their legitimate business activities.
