The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Drugs

  • Ambode’s aide advises youths on drugs

    Ambode’s aide advises youths on drugs

    The Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode on Christian Religion, Rev. David Kolawole Verrals, has urged youths to abstain from hard drugs

    Verrals, who spoke at the weekend in a lecture organised by the Youth Wing of Christian Association of Nigeria (YOWICAN), in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, said it was unfortunate that youths used drugs to destroy their lives.

    He said that was why Lagos YOWICAN organiseda lecture, tagged: ‘Menace of Drugs Among Youths’, to discourage them from hard drugs.

    Verrals said: “The youth wing of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN)in Lagos State, at our last council meeting, discussed ways to assist youths in contributing to nation building. We observed that youths are not mentally prepared for activities that can make their voice to be heard on national issues. We observed that socio-economic problems have allowed their condition to deteriorate; engaging in cultism, robbery, drug abuse, militancy, kidnapping and others.

    “This appraisal of activities of youths and the need for their contributions to nation building led to the initiative to organise a lecture to advocate a solution to the menace of drug abuse among them.”

    CAN’s Secretary in Lagos State Elder Israel Akinadewo, who delivered a keynote address, said the environment and peer influence shaped youth behaviour.

    He said parents should serve as role models to their children, to discourage them from drug abuse.

    Akinadewo enjoined the government to tackle unemployment among youths

    He said if they were employed,they would not engage in drug abuse, “because an idle hand is the devil’s workshop.”

    Chairman of the event Dr. Dele Ajayi and the Vice Chairman of YOWICAN in Lagos, Apostle Mike Akinluade, said youths should imbibe virtues.

    Primary and secondary school pupils attended the lecture.

  • ‘Don’t remove drugs from exclusive list’

    The National Council of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has urged  the National Assembly not to remove drug matters from the exclusive list.

    It said  since independence drug matters  had remained in the exclusive list and would be dangerous for the country with insecurity and poor regulatory controls to contemplate having 37 authorities for products and premises licensing.

    The PSN warned that the plan would boost drug fakery, misuse and abuse as well as other aberrations in drug distribution.

    Meanwhile, PCN President Ahmed I. Yakasai and Secretary, Emeka C. Duru, have expressed anxiety at the level of restiveness of healthworkers, which has led their unions and AHPA to declare another 21-day ultimatum to the government since February 8.

    Yakasai urged the Federal Ministry of Health to facilitate an  Information Technology (IT) policy, which will centralise information about registered drugs and products,  pharmaceutical premises, and business partners of the PSN, PCN and NAFDAC.

    The PSN Council  advocated strong collaborations between the PCN  and other agencies, such as the Consumer Protection Council (CPC).

    It, therefore, advised that when breaches were brought to the attention of the CPC, it should report them to the PCN for sanctions.

  • NDLEA seize ton of illicit drugs, nab 324 suspects in Abia

    NDLEA seize ton of illicit drugs, nab 324 suspects in Abia

    The Abia State Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said that the agency seized about a ton of illicit drugs in the state. This is even as it said that it arrested 324 drug addicts within the state.

    The State Commander of NDLEA, Akingbade Bamidele is a chat with journalists in Aba, the commercial nerve of the state while reviewing the activities of the command in 2017 said that out of the 324 suspects, 304 were males while 20 were females.

    According to him, 24 persons underwent rehabilitation in their facility, while they secured 53 convictions, adding that other cases are still ongoing in various High Courts in the state.

    He further disclosed that the agency counseled and released 78 drug suspects arrested at various drug joints in the state and later handed over to their family members.

    The NDLEA boss who said that the agency was working to secure court order to set ablaze about 6tons of exhibits in the facility whose cases have been concluded stated that they would not be relenting on their oars in nipping the activities of drug merchants and addicts in various notorious drug spots in the state in the bud.

    Akingbade who thanked other sister security agencies especially authorities of the 14Brigade, Ohafia for their support while they raided villages such as Arochukwu, Okonu Ohafia respectively where some drug barons were smashed however, lamented the activities of some youths and village leaders who shield drug dealers in their community from being arrested by its personnel during their raids.

    Expressing worries over the high rate of drug abuse among the youths who he accused of combining depressants and stimulants as substitutes for cocaine before committing all manner of crimes including armed robbery, rape, kidnapping etc said that they were going to establish drug-free clubs in schools to ensure that they educate the youths on the dangers of using hard drugs, adding that they would be establishing their outposts at strategic places to ensure that the war on the sale and consumption of illicit drugs in the state was total.

    The NDLEA boss who said that the agency would continue to engage patent drug dealers in a roundtable discussion on the need to sell drugs to only the people with drug prescription from qualified and approved physicians warned youths against consuming illegal and prohibited drugs.

    He called on the state and federal government to come to their aides, adding that with the provision of adequate logistics, the agency would do more in its fight against illicit drugs.

  • ‘Drugs worth over N200m recovered’

    ‘Drugs worth over N200m recovered’

    DRUGS worth  over N200 million  were recovered at Akala,  Mushin, Lagos, through community partnership, Commissioner of Police (CP) Imohimi Edgal said yesterday..

    Speaking during a town hall meeting hosted by the Area J Police Command, the police chief said every community had peculiar security challenges.

    “During the various town hall meetings that I have held, I discovered that different communities have their various problems.

    “In Isolo, the Oba told me that their major problems are drug abuse and cultism following which we immediately went into partnership with the people.

    “Within the shortest period, we made series of arrests, recovered and destroyed over N200 million worth of drugs at Akala area,” he said.

    Edgal said the command addressed neighbourhood crimes in Ikorodu area with community policing using strategy and technology.

    “If this synergy can be reciprocated here then issues of neighbourhood crimes will soon be a thing of the past,” he said.

    The CP also urged the public to speak out against drug abuse and cultism as policemen could be transferred but the community members would remain in their domains.

    He urged religious and  community leaders and public office holders to work together and preach to the people on the evils of cultism.

    Edgal said the police would work with the people to make their communities safe.

  • Lawmaker solicits support for war against fake drugs

    Lawmaker solicits support for war against fake drugs

    A member representing Anambra East in the House of Assembly, Mr. Obinna Emenaka, has urged governments to combat production, sale and circulation of fake and adulterated drugs.

    The lawmaker, who spoke yesterday in Awka in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said the war against fake and adulterated drugs must be won to save lives.

    He said governments should protect citizens to prevent further loss of lives.

    Emenaka enjoined Nigerians to embrace universal precaution against distribution and use of fake and substandard drugs.

    He said identification of custodians and sources of drugs should be created to curb the menace.

    The legislator suggested the creation of an enabling environment for regulation in the sector.

    He noted that open drug market did not guarantee authentication of sources of drugs and should be discouraged.

    Emenaka said new outlets should be introduced to decongest Onitsha Drug Market and provide access to genuine drugs for patent medicine dealers, pharmacists and doctors with clinics.

    The lawmaker said such outfits would help in the fight against fake drugs.

    He implored the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to take action against unwholesome drugs and products.

    Emenaka advised Nigerians to buy drugs from approved sources, to avoid consumption of fake and substandard drugs.

  • Losing weight can reverse diabetes without drugs

    Losing weight can reverse diabetes without drugs

    Previous research showed that excess fat within the liver and pancreas caused type 2-diabetes. Participants in a new study went into remission after a weight loss programme 

    Putting a person with type 2 diabetes on an intensive weight loss programme can reverse the disease with no need for medication, according to a landmark study. The findings could revolutionise the way it is treated, researchers said, benefiting both patients and the NHS.

    Almost half of the participants in a weight-loss programme that used low-calorie shakes and soups were in remission after 12 months, despite some having had type 2 diabetes for six years.

    Almost one in 10 adults in Britain have type 2 diabetes and the condition costs the NHS about £14 billion a year.

    Mike Lean from the University of Glasgow, lead researcher of the Diabetes Remission Clinical Trial (Direct), said: “Putting type 2 diabetes into remission as early as possible after diagnosis could have extraordinary benefits, both for the individual and the NHS. Direct is telling us it could be possible for as many as half of patients to achieve this in routine primary care, and without drugs.”

    The study, published in The Lancet, involved almost 300 people, half of whom received standard diabetes care from their GP while the other half took part in a structured weight management programme. Only four per cent of those given standard care went into remission, compared with 46 per cent on the weight-loss programme.

    “These findings are very exciting. They could revolutionise the way type 2 diabetes is treated,” Roy Taylor from Newcastle University, co-lead researcher, said. “Rather than addressing the root cause, management guidelines for type 2 diabetes focus on reducing blood sugar levels through drug treatments. Diet and lifestyle are touched upon but diabetes remission by cutting calories is rarely discussed.”

    Of people who lost 15kg or more on the diet, 86 per cent put their type 2 diabetes into remission. Of those who lost 10-15kg, 57 per cent achieved remission, while of those who lost 5-10kg, 34 per cent achieved remission.

    The results mimic those shown by bariatric surgery, such as gastric bands or bypasses, for people with type 2 diabetes. Although the procedures are effective for weight loss and reversing the disease, they also come with risks and NHS bosses have been unwilling to fund them except in extreme cases.

    Professor Taylor said: “Our findings suggest the very large weight losses targeted by bariatric surgery are not essential to reverse the underlying processes which cause type 2 diabetes. The weight loss goals provided by this programme are achievable for many.”

    The team’s previous research showed that excess fat within the liver and pancreas caused type 2 diabetes.

    The study will follow participants for four years to see if weight loss and remission can be maintained long term.

    Elizabeth Robertson of Diabetes UK, which funded the trial, said: “These first-year findings of Direct demonstrate the potential to transform the lives of millions of people . . . It’s very important that anyone living with type 2 diabetes considering losing weight in this way seeks support and advice.”

     

    The regime

     

    • A nurse or dietician started patients on a diet of shakes and soups that provided between 825 and 853 calories a day for three to five months. The drinks came as a sachet of powder stirred into water.

     

    • Dieticians then helped patients reintroduce solid, healthy meals to their diets over two to eight weeks.

     

    • Participants were also offered advice on how to maintain their weight loss.

     

    • The dietary advice given out in the Counterweight-Plus programme will not be very different from that given by the NHS more generally. What is different is the counseling that goes with it, which aims to help people break out of their bad habits around food.

     

     

    •Culled from The Times of London

  • Remove tariffs on anti-diabetes drugs, others, Fed Govt urged

    The Federal Government has been urged to remove tariffs on imported anti-diabetes drugs and devices to make them affordable.

    Experts gave the advice at the capacity building workshop for reporters organised by a multinational pharmaceutical company, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, as part of activities marking the World Diabetes Day.

    A major highlight of the workshop was the revelation that many sufferers of the disease could not control their blood sugar as the cost of drugs and monitoring devices have become too expensive and unreachable.

    A Senior Lecturer/Consultant Endocrinologist at the Department of Medicine, College of Medicine/University of Lagos, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Dr Ifedayo Odeniyi, said diabetes is on the increase worldwide, especially in developing countries.

    He disclosed that over in 100,000 deaths were caused by the disease  in the country in 2013, adding that the disease affects about 5.5 per cent of the population and could rise to 6.1 percent, if urgent steps were not taken to curtail its spread.

    According to the medic, Nigeria has the third highest incidence of diabetes in Africa, after South Africa with 9.7 percent and Tanzania 7.8 percent.

    He regretted that many people do not know they have the disease because its symptoms occur when it has progressed to an advanced stage.

    He however said while the disease has no cure, people with diabetes could live to a ripe old age and enjoy a good quality of life, if they strive to control the disease.

    Diabetes control, he said, involved good diet, exercise, use of drugs and  compliance with the doctor’s instructions. He advised those with the disease to work with the health care givers in managing their condition.

    The goal of diabetes management, Odeniyi said, is to prevent complications which, when they occur, could be deadly or very expensive to manage.

    “Poorly managed diabetes leads to serious complications and early death,” he said.

    Such complications, he said, include blindness, kidney failure, heart diseases, infections, skin diseases, among several others.

    Head, External Affairs Sanofi Nigeria-Ghana, Mr. Oladimeji Agbolade, urged the participants to be relentless in their enlightenment efforts about diabetes, adding that the disease is fast becoming an epidemic worldwide.

    He urged the Federal Government to implement the proposed policy aimed at ensuring that every patient who reports in the hospital has their blood glucose measured  just as it is done with blood pressure to ensure early detection of the disease.

  • ‘Why there are no drugs in State House Clinic’

    ‘Why there are no drugs in State House Clinic’

    The large number of people taking free treatment at the State House Clinic is responsible for the lack of drugs at the hospital, Permanent Secretary State House Jala Arabi has said.

    This is contained in the report on the Clinic he submitted to the House of Representatives committee looking into the alarm on the poor state of the hospital raised by Wife of the President Mrs Aisha Buhari.

    The Hon. Magaji Aliyu-headed ad-hoc committee had requested the Ministry of Health and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to provide detailed account of the State House Clinic.

    Part of the report said: “The State House reached an agreement with HMOs with regard to the remittance of all NHIS payments in respect of State House Staff whose NHIS point is the State House Medical Centre..

    “ It is instructive, however to note that whereas almost 80% of the personnel serving in the State House access medical services at the State House Medical Centre, only about 20% of them selected the medical Centre as their NHIS point.

    “The implication of the foregoing is that, whereas they access free medical services at the Centre, their respective NHIS contributions go to those medical facilities they selected as their providers, even though they do not go there for any medical service. This explains the quick depletion of the drugs and other consumables due to the very high number of patients being attached.”

    The members expressed concern over the report presented by Arabi that out of 329 personnel working in the State House Clinic, 47 non-core medical personnel for several years illegally collected call-duty allowances.

    According to him, some doctors sponsored by the State House on Residency Programmes (usually 2 years), got their call duty allowances paid “even though they are no longer performing call duties at the medical Centre.”

    The report added: “Sadly, some of them were discovered to have spent close to 7 years doing residency, with many changing institutions, as they fail to qualify. In view of the fact that paying doctors on sponsored Training programmed call duty allowance was considered unearned allowances.

    ” IPPIS (OAGF) was advised to cease paying them such allowances pending their return to duty from training. This has however become controversial and we are reviewing with the assistance of the Federal Ministry of Health who are guiding us appropriately,” Arabi said.

    He said despite their failure to enlist on the State House Clinic’s National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), 80 per cent of the State House workers and their spouses are enjoying free medical services, at the expense of the government

    At the interactive session were Ismaila Kawu, Senior Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters (House); Ita Enang, Speciak Adviser to the President on Ntional Assembly Matters (Senate); Osagie Ehanire, Minister of State for Health and representatives of Muhammad Bello, FCT Minister, held at the National Assembly complex, Abuja.

    Minister of State for Health, Osagie Ehanire and the FCT Health Secretary, Mrs Amanda Pam told the committee that the state House clinic is not directly under the Ministry of Health and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) admnistration.

    Aliyu said: “The summary of the whole thing is that the clinic is just there, it is not supervised and is not under anybody.

    “The Ministry of Health and FCT said they are not aware, meaning the hospital is just there.. I want all information on the clinic. We can’t afford to risk the life of Mr. President and somebody should be responsible.”

    Ehanire said: “The State House Clinic is not directly under my ministry. I don’t know who is directly in-charge. I didn’t say that it is not under anybody, may be under the FCT.

    “It is not unusual that the clinic is not under the ministry, this is also applicable in some states. This is what we met on ground.

    “I am not aware of the status of the training of the doctors practicing in the clinic. The choice of who heads the clinic lies on the President. It is the prerogative of the President.”

    He added: the Clinic is supposed to be operated along regular hospitals.

  • WHO, NAFDAC partner on eradicating fake drugs

    WHO, NAFDAC partner on eradicating fake drugs

    The Federal Government has introduced drug Coordinated Wholesale Centres (CWCs) to check the menace of fake and falsified medical products in the country even as it warned that by end of December next year, all open drug markets will be shut.

    Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole stated this in Lagos during a stakeholders workshop organised by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO).

    The workshop was themed, “The prevention, detection and response of substandard and falsified medical products.”

    Prof Adewole said the new measures were designed to allow drugs to be sourced directly from the importers or manufacturers down to the end users instead of buying drugs from the open drug markets.

    According to him, the federal Ministry of Health had already developed National Drug Distribution Guidelines, NDDG, in 2012 to address the unsatisfactory chaotic drug distribution system of the country.

    He said coordinated wholesale centres to accommodate open market medicines sellers have been approved and are being developed in Lagos, Onitsha, Aba and Kano and CWCs will commence operation by January 1st 2019. Adewole observed that medicine is an important component of healthcare delivery service and without the infusion of medicines; the health care service delivery system of a nation is sterile.

    Prof Adewole said: “A good-quality medicine supply system is essential for healthcare delivery. There is a special need to prevent therapeutic drug falsification in order to safeguard against health and maintain trust in healthcare system. The overall scale of trading in medicine and the resultant harm done to global health has not been adequately accessed.”

    Acting Director-General of NAFDAC, Mr. Ademola Mogbojuri, said the public health implications of substandard and falsified medical products are dire and this includes treatment failure, high treatment cost, development of resistance, loss of confidence in the healthcare providers and healthcare system and may ultimately, result in fatality and death.”

    Mr. Mogbojuri raised the alarm that the problem of faking has become a serious threat to global public health. He added that the fight against this nefarious act requires sustained action by both governmental and non governmental bodies. “Single and isolated interventions cannot address the issue of substandard falsified medical products. I call for coordinated actions with international organisations to reduce to the barest minimum the incidence of the ugly menace.”

    The Acting Director-General said WHO established member states mechanism on substandard, spurious falsely labeled, falsified and counterfeit medical products following its resolution 65:19 in May, 2012 to promote public health, and access to affordable, safe, efficacious and quality medical product, across the globe.

    Declaring the workshop open, the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode who noted that the number of lives lost as a result of substandard medical product in the market was alarming blamed the unacceptable situation to weakness of regulatory bodies charged with the responsibility of nipping the act in the bud.

    Ambode said the capacity building workshop on prevention, detection and response to substandard and falsified medical products would improve the effectiveness of measures that have been put in place to achieve these objectives.

    He said: “It is important to emphasise that this fight must be holistic in terms of participation by all relevant government agencies including custom service standard organisation of Nigeria and the Nigeria police among others.

    ”Our efforts must also focus on identifying the sources of these products with a view to ensuring that they do not find their way into the market.”

     

  • Police, task force arrest 50 ‘with 48 bags of drugs’

    Police, task force arrest 50 ‘with 48 bags of drugs’

    The Police and operatives of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences (Enforcement) Unit (Task Force) have arrested 50 suspected criminals with 48 bags of illicit drugs around Akala in  Mushin.

    The mid-night operation was led by Soji Akinbayo, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), the task force Chairman, Olayinka Egbeyemi, a Superintendent of Police (SP) and all Divisional Police Officers under Area ‘D’ command Mushin.

    All the suspects were charged on Friday before Magistrate Lateef Owolabi of the Lagos State Mobile Court on three-count charge of unlawful possession of weed suspected to be indian hemp, trading in indian hemp and conduct likely to cause breach of peace and disorderly manner.

    Lagos State Office of Public Defenders provided free legal services for the accused. Bashiru Abdulsalam appeared on their behalf.

    Prosecuting Counsel Oluremi Kuku said the suspects pleaded not guilty  before Magistrate Owolabi granted them bail.

    The case was adjourned till November 15.

    Egbeyemi, in a statement said  those arrested during the raid include 44 men and six women.

    According to him, substances suspected to be indian hemp with packs of other illicit drugs such as ‘Novalyn with Codeine Cough Syrub’ and ‘Tuxil-C cough and cold with Codeine’ were recovered during the raid.

    The Tak force said one of the suspects, Sunday Adesoye a.k.a ‘Malboro’ confessed that ‘Akala’ serves as a ‘Central Market’ for indian hemp and illicit drugs to all miscreants across the State.

    Malboro was quoted to have sold an average of N500,000 worth of Indian hemp with other illicit drugs daily to his customers from Obalende, Oshodi, Pen-cinema, Apapa, Lagos Island, Fadeyi amongst others.

    “A suspect, Mrs Basirat Jimoh a.k.a Iya Suzzy, who hails from Ibadan, Oyo State capital confessed to have been trading in indian hemp and other illicit drugs at Akala area for over 17 years. She however claimed to be only buying/selling india hemp and not into criminal activities,” task force said.