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  • NAFDAC uncovers contraband in Onitsha

    NAFDAC uncovers contraband in Onitsha

    The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Monday uncovered 30 different banned and unregistered products worth millions of naira in Onitsha, Anambra, an official has said.

    Mrs Christiana Essenwa, a Deputy Director of NAFDAC, said this when she conducted newsmen round the uncompleted building where the contraband were discovered.

    She listed some of the banned products to include rice, vegetable oil, tomato paste, tomato ketchup and toilet and medicated soaps.

    The list includes, among others, dairy products, hand wash, creams, cosmetics, toothpaste, furniture, plastic products, electrical cables and textiles imported in a 40-foot container.

    Essenwa expressed concern that in spite of the Federal Government ban, some businessmen ignored the hazards the banned products pose to unsuspecting consumers.

    “These contraband items are written in foreign language; it is difficult for consumers to know the content of the products, making it hazardous for consumers in the country.

    “For instance, these foreign toothpastes contain saccharine which is not allowed in the country; the vegetable oils do not have the eye logo, signifying that they are fortified with vitamin A.

    “We are going to confiscate every item and get them ready for destruction,” Essenwa said.

    She said some of the seized products such as textiles, cables and plastics also required the involvement of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to certify the authenticity of the items.

    The deputy director said the discovery was made following a tip-off and urged the public to be circumspect before picking products on display in the market.

    “Check whether they have NAFDAC registration number; whether the labelling is alright, whether it was written in foreign language, manufacturing address and of course, the expiry date,” Essenwa said.

    Also speaking, an industrialist, Mr Steve Evans, the Manager of Evans Industries Limited, decried the importation of fake products into the country, describing the act as “economic sabotage”.

    Evans, urged the Federal Government to step up its surveillance on fake products being dumped in the country.

    Read Also:  NAFDAC reduces MSMEs registration fee By 50%

  • NAFDAC crashes MSMEs registration fee by 50 %

    NAFDAC crashes MSMEs registration fee by 50 %

    The National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has reduced the cost of registring products from Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) by 50 per cent for companies with five or less than five employees, in line with Federal Government’s policy on Ease of Doing Business (EDB).

    Speaking during NAFDAC Stakeholders Consultative Forum on Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria, at Mambayya House, Kano yesterday, the Acting Director-General of NAFDAC, Mr. Ademola Mogbojuri, who was represented by NAFDAC Director, Special Duties, Dr. Abubakar Jimoh, explained that the rationale behind the reduction was to encourage MSMES to solidly stand on their feet and continue to contribute their quota to the economic development of the country.

    He also stated that NAFDAC has also concluded plans to reduce registration time by 90 days, adding that, “NAFDAC is to implement 50 per cent reduction in cost of registration of products for companies with five or less than five employees.”

    According to him, NAFDAC has also worked out modalities for the establishment of Small Business Support Desk (SBSD) to guide small business through registration process, which will also serve as enquiry point for small business on regulatory issues.

  • 13 Years Of Living In Pain Cured In Less Than 30 Days

    13 Years Of Living In Pain Cured In Less Than 30 Days

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    Read the story 57 years old Man who got cured after suffering from pain for over 13 years.

    You need to read this full story to see how Mr James was able to get complete help with dealing with his pain issue.

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  • Alleged manufacture of fake products Tasty Times’ MD gets N3m bail

    Alleged manufacture of fake products Tasty Times’ MD gets N3m bail

    A Federal High Court Lagos on Tuesday, granted bail in the sum of N3million to the Managing Director of Tasty Time Nig. Ltd, Isaac Kole, charged with alleged manufacture of fake products.
    The National Agency for Food Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) had on Nov. 2, arraigned the accused on a four-count charge of producing fake and unregistered products.
    Kole, who was arraigned alongside his company, Tasty Time Nig. Ltd, had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    Justice Hadiza Rabiu-Shagari had allowed the accused to continue with the administrative bail granted him, and had adjourned for determination of his bail application.

    On Tuesday,Rabiu-Shagari, granted the accused bail in the sum of N3 million with two sureties in like sum.

    The judge said that one of the sureties must be a civil servant of the level of director who must produce his letter of employment and last promotion letter.

    The court further ruled that the sureties, who must be residents within the court’s jurisdiction, must depose to an affidavit of means.

    The judge also directed that the accused must submit his International passport to the Court’s Deputy Chief Registrar (DCR).
    She consequently adjourned the case until Nov 23, for trial.
    In the charge, marked FHC/L/351c/17, NAFDAC alleged that Kole and his company had been using their plant to produce unregistered Tasty Time products.
    It said that the product include: Tasty Time juice, Glucosaid Energy drink, Tasty Time Pops orange flavoured drink, Tasty Time Fitz Apple drink and Tasty Time mixed orange flavoured drink.

    The accused was also alleged to have packaged and labelled the products in a manner likely to create a wrong impression that they were genuine.

    NAFDAC further alleged that the accused also sold the same unregistered products to the general public.
    The offences, according to the prosecutor, Mrs Chinyere Okoli contravenes the provisions of sections 1(1), 5(a) and 5(e), of the Foods and Drugs related Products Cap. F33, Laws of the Federation 2004.

  • Fake products: Court to rule on Tasty Time MD’s bail application

    Fake products: Court to rule on Tasty Time MD’s bail application

    A Federal High Court in Lagos on Monday fixed Nov. 7 for ruling on the bail application of the Managing Director of Tasty Time Nigeria Ltd, Isaac Kole, charged with manufacture of fake products.

    Kole, who was arraigned alongside his company — Tasty Time Nigeria Ltd, had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) had on Nov. 2 arraigned the accused on a four-count charge bordering on producing fake and unregistered products.

    Justice Hadiza Rabiu-Shagari had allowed the accused to continue with the administrative bail granted him and adjourned until Monday for the determination of his bail application.

    The judge had also ordered the accused to produce a director either from Federal or Lagos State Civil Service, who would sign an undertaking to produce him in court on the next adjournment.

    At the resumed hearing of the case on Monday, the case was again adjourned until Nov. 7 as the court did not sit.

    The prosecution alleged that Kole and his company had been using their plant to produce unregistered Tasty Time products.

    NAFDAC said the products include Tasty Time juice, Glucosaid Energy drink, Tasty Time Pops orange flavoured drink, Tasty Time Fitz Apple drink and Tasty Time mixed orange flavoured drink.

    The accused was also alleged to have packaged and labelled the products in a manner likely to create a wrong impression that they were genuine and also sold the unregistered products to the public.

    The offences, according to the prosecutor, Mrs Chinyere Okoli of NAFDAC, contravene the provisions of Sections 1(1), 5(a) and 5(e) of the Foods and Drugs Related Products Act, Laws of the Federation 2004.

  • FG orders NAFDAC to reduce products registration period

    FG orders NAFDAC to reduce products registration period

    AS part of the efforts to improve the ease of doing business in the country, the Federal Government yesterday ordered the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration (NAFDAC) to reduce the products registration period by 30 days.

    Currently, it takes 90 days to register products with the NAFDAC.

    With the new directive, henceforth the registration should not be more than 60 days.

    Speaking in Abuja yesterday at the NAFDAC stakeholders’ consultative forum on the ease of doing business in Nigeria, the Vice President, Yemi Osibanjo, said this would encourage business owners.

    The Vice-President, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Fola Johnson, said a shorter period of 60 days was possible.

    He, therefore, charged the NAFDAC to speed up its process of registration as this was one of the best ways to encourage small businesses.

    He said: “A period of 60 days is possible. Collectively, let us put our house in order. Let MSMEs, NAFDAC and the Federal Government target 60 days. The shorter the time for registration, the better for MSMEs. To collect a registration number should not take months. When will you start the business? When will you start making profits?

    “Any MSME that employs a person today is doing the Federal Government a huge favour. What the Federal Government is supposed to do is create an enabling environment.

    “It is the private sector that drives the economy, so we must encourage every activity that drives that space,” he said.

    In his reaction, the acting Director-General of the NAFDAC, Mr. Ademola Mogbojuri, said the agency had reduced its registration period from a maximum of one year to a minimum of 90 days.

    He, however, said “efforts would be made to ensure that it is brought down to between a month and 60 days, especially for small businesses”.

    On other measures taken to encourage small businesses, Mogbojuri, who was represented by Mr. Abubakar Jimoh, Director, Strategy, said the agency had recently slashed by 50 per cent the cost of registration for companies with less than five employees.

    He said:  “In order to encourage MSMEs, the NAFDAC has guaranteed a 50 per cent reduction in cost of registration of products for companies with five or less than five employees.

    “We’ve also reduced the registration time to 90 days and established a small business support desk to guide small businesses through the registration process and serve as an enquiry point for small businesses on regulatory issues.

    “NAFDAC has set up a system for the electronic submission of documents to line directorates to reduce the time taken for hard copies to get to such directorates in Lagos,” he noted.

    Magbojuri hinted that the NAFDAC would ensure that bread registration is done within 30 days,  while the fees charged for registration of locally manufactured products are lower than those charged for imported products.

  • ‘NAFDAC prosecuting over 64 cases’

    ‘NAFDAC prosecuting over 64 cases’

    The Acting Director-General (DG) of theNational Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) Mr. Ademola Magbojuri has said the agency is prosecuting over 64 cases.

    According to him, the figure would have been higher but for a deliberate policy to explore other means of stemming the drug counterfeiting menace.

    The DG, who spoke with reporters at the agency’s headquarters in Lagos, urged the National Assembly to enact laws stipulating stiff punishment for drug counterfeiters.

    Magbojuri said:”If we were to prosecute every offender, we would have about 500 cases in court. That is why we have provisions for notarised undertaking where we ask offenders to pledge to not go back, then we profile them; we have all of that. It serves as a deterrent. It’s like we’re pulling your ear, ‘Don’t do it. The next time you do it, we’ll charge you to court.’

    “So, we have all of that in place. That is why we don’t have as many cases in court as the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), for instance.”

    He urged the lawmakers to uphold the agency’s recommendations that perpetrators of such acts be compelled to compensate their victims and also forfeit proceeds of the crime.

    Last November 3, a Bill to review the Counterfeit and Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act Cap C34 Laws of the Federation 2004, scaled through the third reading stage at the Senate.

    Magbojuri encouraged the House of Representatives to hasten the passage of the bill.

    He explainedthat the agency was carrying out coordinated nationwide enforcement operations to rid the country of counterfeit and fake medical products.

    NAFDAC Director of Investigation & Enforcement, Mr Kingsley Ejiofor urged the public to spread the message on the danger of counterfeit drugs.

    Ejiofor identified several constraints faced by the agency including the incessant transfer of investigating police officers involved in prosecuting offenders.

    He said: “Sometimes when they transfer them, to get them to come back to prosecute is a problem. Another one is when suspects are granted bail, some of them jump bail and are never found again.

    Ejiofor encouraged firms to include NAFDAC in their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes.

    “We need all the support we can get, such as vehicles to convey people, materials etc,” he said.

     

  • SERVICOM decried lack of operational vehicles in NAFDAC

    SERVICOM decried lack of operational vehicles in NAFDAC

    SERVICOM National Coordinator, Mrs Nnenna Akajemeli has decried the lack of operational vehicles for field works at the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

    This is as SERVICOM also advised NAFDAC to do away with consultants, so as to guide against sharp practices.

    Akajemeli spoke on Friday while presenting the report of SERVICOM assessment of NAFDAC to it’s  new Acting Director General, Mr Ademola Mogbojuri.

    NAFDAC in the assessment was scored average, with two stars after carrying out an assessment on the eight offices across the country.

    SERVICOM used a set of business-relevant key performance Indicators that provide a standardized method for measuring and comparing performance against service standards defined by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs). It measures the key influences on service delivery and customer satisfaction as well as the need for feedback and future development. 

    Identifying some of the weaknesses of NAFDAC, Akajemeli said at the time of evaluation, the were inconsistencies on whether or not the agency deploys the use of consultants to facilitate the procurement of the agency’s service to customers. 

    Also, the dearth of operational vehicles for the agency’s field activities and this had hampered the efficacy of investigation activities, like enforcement directorate. 

    SERVICOM also noticed that NAFDAC was not in regular consultations with customers amongst other. 

    Akajemeli, therefore, urged NAFDAC to ensure continuous improvement on quality of service, while at the same time recommended requisite training for all categories of staff. 

    On consultancy, she advised that the management need to stop the individuals parading themselves as consultants of the agency so that members of the public are not taken undue advantage of. 

    SERVICOM, she said is in collaboration with NAFDAC as critical partners in actualizing the proposed service improvement plan. 

    In his reaction, the Acting Director-General, Magbojuri said the weaknesses identified would be working upon as the agency aims at becoming a leading government agency in service delivery. 

    He also urged staff of the agency to rise up to the challenge of turning around the fortune of the agency to an agency of excellence. 

  • NAFDAC arrests ‘fake insecticides dealer’

    The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Monday rearrested a non-repentant counterfeit insecticide dealer Mr Obumneme Okpala (a.k.a Okanu).

    Okpala specialises in the importation and sale of suspected counterfeit, unregistered and adulterated insecticides.

    The suspect was arrested in 2015 for importing fake and unwholesome 1x40ft container of Kilit Insecticide through Onne Port in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital. He wrote an undertaking not to engage in it again.

    The agency on Monday recovered fake 1,539 cartons of Royal Dream, 52 Cartons of Kilit, 333 Cartons of Read-A-Dream and 281 cartons of Kilit worth N50million from him.

    NAFDAC Acting Director-General Ademola Mogbojuri said a tip-off by a whistle-blower led to Okpala’s re-arrest.

    Mogbojuri said: “Last Friday, around 2pm, our surveillance discovered the products at Block 188, Plot 2054 Amuwo Odofin, Lagos. Several cartons of Kilit Insecticide and Read A- Dream Insecticide were stacked in the main building while the boy’s quarter was stacked with several cartons of Royal Dream Insecticide.

    “NAFDAC Investigation and Enforcement Officers had placed Okpala’s facility on hold and invitation letter was left for him when they could not gain entrance into the place. In the night, an informant told NAFDAC that the facility previously placed on hold had been broken into by the suspect at 9pm. NAFDAC team and policemen moved to the place. On arrival, the padlocks to the gate of the building had been cut, the hold labels on the entrance of the building and doors were torn. All the products (Kilit Insecticide and Read-A-Dream Insecticide) had been evacuated from the main building.

    “The team could not locate the vehicles and returned to the premises to lay siege within for the suspect. About 3.00am, Okpala drove back into the premises with another vehicle to evacuate some  of the other products in the boys’ quarters and was apprehended.”

  •  Military not involved in vaccination – FG

     Military not involved in vaccination – FG

    Federal Government on Wednesday said  the military is not involved in any monkey pox vaccination as presently rumoured.

    The rumors had spread like wildfire that the military was injecting monkey pox virus to people in their medical outreach across the country.

    The Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole said this when he briefed State House correspondences at the end of the Federal Executive Council meeting presided by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    He was with the Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu and the Special Adviser to the President on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina.

    According to him, the eleven states are Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Lagos, Nasarawa and Rivers.

    While stressing that outbreak was confirmed in Bayelsa, he said that out of the 19 samples tested, 3 tested positive from Bayelsa 12 tested negative from Bayelsa, and 4 tested negative from Lagos.

    He explained that the military  medical outreach has never harm anyone and in some cases involved in road construction and other services.

    He said “Council also received an update of the public health of the nation.  We informed Council about the latest development with respect to the Monkey Pox virus outbreak. So far, as of today, there are 74 suspected cases in 11 states of the country. We have confirmed three in Bayelsa state, We are still expecting the results of other ones.

    “We are also doing advance test in NEDE,  that is the African Centre of Excellence for Genomes and Infections Disease to really understand the genomes of this virus.  Even when they are negative, the laboratory attendance should be able to tell us what exactly they are. We will also be able to locate and identify the origin so that we can take adequate precaution.” he said

    On the military vaccination rumors, he said  “It is also important to use this opportunity to dispel the rumour circulating in the country that the military is vaccinating people and trying to spread monkey pox across the country. The military is not involved in any vaccination exercise and I must also really educate the Nigeria people about how vaccination campaigns are done.

    “Federal will take the lead but we do not conduct campaign without involving states.  So, there is no way we will do campaign for vaccination without working with the states and it is the state that will be in front and we provide support.

    “The rumour that federal is involved in monkey pox vaccination campaign is not true. And as of today, we are only doing vaccination campaign in three states against other diseases.

    “We are doing vaccination campaign against yellow fever in Kwara and Kogi because of yellow fever outbreak in some parts of the country. We are also doing cholera vaccination in Borno state and so anybody carrying the rumour,  please help us educate Nigerians that it is not true. We are not vaccinating anybody, we plan to do missiles campaign very soon and we will also do yellow fever before the end of the year and we will let you know.

    “You will never find Federal staff conducting vaccination campaign without the support and active participation of the state ministry of health, this is just to correct the misconception.” he stated

    Asked whether he was disowning the  military over the issue, he said “With respect to what the military is doing, I spoke about vaccination and not about military campaign. The military as part of a campaign of winning over the heart and soul of the people havel got engaged in several things. In the past,  the military was noted of even constructed roads, the military will do outreaches, measure blood pressure, talk to people. These are normal things,  I referred only to vaccination.

    “We had to request for the assistance of the military in Borno state to reach inaccessible area with respect to the polio campaign so we have worked with the military in the past and we will continue to work with them.

    “There are doctors in the military, there are nurses and when you go abroad, some of the best institutions abroad are those ones managed by the military. So we cannot disown the military. But what I want to put across is that the military is not involved in any vaccination.” he said

    On the report of illegal traffickers of kidney,  he said “With respect to the harvest of organs we received advice periodically from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, from National Security Adviser about goings on around the world. One of which is the harvest of organ illegally and it is our duty to alert Nigerians that this is ongoing, they should be careful, they should seek advice, they should patronize only accredited institution.

    “And as we rebuild our health infrastructure there will be less need for anybody to travel out and so we spare Nigerians the agony of falling victims of some of these illegal practices.”

    Speaking on the growing drug abuse among the youth,  he said “We are quite aware of this.  Abuse will take several forms.  Abuse of substances that are smuggled into the country in higher doses than normal. For example we have metadol and tramadol and even Viagra being smuggled into the country. Look at the dosage, the Viagra dosage is three times normal and when you look at the tramadol it is three to four times normal and once NAFDAC officials come in contact, they are impounded and destroyed.

    “We are also working with the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria to educate people about the abuses.  We are aware of the abuse of cough mixture because of the content and we are working hard in respect to this.”

    Stressing that Nigeria is part of the campaign against tobacco, he said that the country is implementing the framework convention in tobacco control.

    “As of Monday we were part of the  ECOWAS meeting to look at how do we raise taxes on tobacco. That meeting we really worked to prevent smuggling on tobacco products, we looked at how we can raise taxes on tobacco products. It is known that Nigeria has one of cheapest tobacco prices in the world and that will contribute to the abuse.  That convention and recommendations coming from there will really contribute to raising taxes on tobacco and also generating resources that will go into health.

    The Minister of Water Resources disclosed that the Council also approved the sum of N236 million for the completion of Sabke dam in Katsina state.

    He said “One Memo from my ministry was considered today as part of our efforts to improve the hethrege for irrigation, we have been committing ourselves to completing many of the irrigation projects we inherited in the past two years. One of such is the Sabke irrigation project. This is a project that started as far back as 1997 during the PTF days but was abandoned and then reawarded in 2009, completed 95 percent by 2012 and again abandoned.

    “When we came into office, I commissioned a technical audit of all the ongoing project and n the ministry and because of the status of that project having attained 95 percent completion,  it became a priority project because it was a low hanging fruit for us to complete.

    “Unfortunately, when the contractor was mobilised to site,  we found out that a lot of component of the irrigation project had been vandalized and for us to be able to put that project into effective use,  we now have to do a lot of rehabilitation works and we therefore brought a memo seeking Council to give us an augmentation of about N280m for us to be able to complete the work 100 percent and make it fit for the purpose and Council considered and approved this memo.”