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Officials of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration
and Control (NAFDAC), yesterday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State Capital closed a
popular pharmacy over alleged sale of counterfeit drugs. Patent Medicine Stores
in the town and several adultrated drugs impounded.

The NAFDAC officials carried out the operations during an
unannounced random check on a number of pharmacies and patent medicine stores
across the state. On the spot investigations were carried out on drugs with the
use of a machine called Truscan which reveals the authenticity of tested drugs.

Drugs found to be fake were immediately withdrawn from the
shelves by the investigators, who also ordered the proprietors to report at the
NAFDAC office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta for further investigation to reveal
sources of such drugs.

Cracking down

At a press conference he addressed after the operations, NAFDAC’s
Director, Ports Inspection Directorate, Momodu-Segiru Momodu disclosed that in
the course of the operations, the Janiez Pharmacy Store located in Adatan area
of the town was closed down.

“Janiez Pharmacy Stores located at Adatan area has been ordered
shut, because we found a number of fake and expired drugs there. We have
equally asked the owner and the pharmacist in charge of the place to report to
our office,” Mr Momodu said.

He lamented that in spite of intensified campaign by the
authorities, some people still find pleasure in dealing in fake and adulterated
drugs.

“The agency would not fold its arm and see the unscrupulous
elements killing innocent people as a result of fake drugs,” he said.

Mr Momodu listed some of the seized drugs to include fake copies
of Fulcin, Gtrotas, Fansidar, Artesunate, Augumentin, Zinnet, Maloxine,
Ampiclox and Lonart DS, among others.

“It is sad that some of these stores even sell the drugs as if
they are groundnuts,” he said.

Officials of the drugs agency this week launched a nationwide
campaign to verify the authenticity of drugs being sold by pharmacies and
patent medicine stores.