Actress and producer Mary Remmy Njoku has urged the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to address the widespread circulation of potentially fake or ineffective medications in Nigeria.
In a post on Instagram, Njoku recounted her recent experience with food poisoning while on a film set. She said she took medication purchased from a popular pharmacy chain in Nigeria, but after three days, her symptoms remained.
According to her, after her husband gave her the same drug bought from abroad, she began to feel better within five minutes.
Njoku noted that the case was not an isolated incident and questioned the quality of medications sold locally.
She called on NAFDAC to act swiftly, warning that the availability of substandard drugs poses a serious public health threat that must be urgently addressed.
She said, “I want to share a recent experience: I had food poisoning on a set and sent a staff member to buy Imodium from a well-known pharmacy chain in Nigeria.
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“A medication I’ve used many times before. I took it for about three days, but my symptoms persisted.
“Then my husband bought a tiny tablet of the same Imodium from abroad, and after taking it, my stomach issues subsided within just five minutes.
“This isn’t the first time I have noticed a difference. So I have to ask: What exactly are we being sold in Nigeria? What’s going on with our drugs?
“This is a public health risk, and NAFDAC must take it seriously. This is very dangerous.”