The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has reopened shops belonging to traders cleared of wrongdoing after its crackdown on fake drugs and substandard products in Abia markets.
The South-East Zonal Director of NAFDAC, Martins Iluyomade, announced the reopening following an appeal from the Abia State government.
This was as pan-Yoruba sociopolitical organisation, Afenifere, called on the Federal Governor to protect NAFDAC Director General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, after she raised the alarm on Tuesday that criminal syndicates were making attempts on her life.
The NAFDAC DG said the agency uncovered and seized an unprecedented N1tn worth of fake and expired drugs.
Speaking on the reopening of the shut Abia markets, Iluyomade emphasised that only traders found innocent would regain access to their shops, while those implicated in the sale of counterfeit medicines would face prosecution.
Iluyomade reiterated the agency’s commitment to sanitising the drug market and protecting public health.
Representatives from Eziukwu Market, Ariaria International Market, Ekumi Plaza, and Tenant Road Medicine Dealers were present at the roundtable discussion.
“What we will do today is free those who have no connection to these illicit activities. However, businesses involved in the sale of medicines must answer to the authorities before their shops can be reopened,” he said.
He commended the Abia State government for intervening in the matter while stressing the need for continued collaboration to rid the markets of harmful products.
The Governor Alex Otti’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Ukoha Njoku-Ukoha, assured affirmed that the state government was intensifying efforts to enforce strict laws against counterfeit drugs, warning that Abia would not serve as a safe haven for illegal pharmaceutical trade.
The Pioneer Chairman of Eziukwu Market, Mike Okoro, and the current Chairman, Mr. Oba Ibe, expressed gratitude for the reopening, pledging to cooperate with NAFDAC in eliminating fake drug sales.
Meanwhile, Afenifere, on Thursday, raised concerns over threats to the life of NAFDAC’s DG and her staff.
The group called on the Federal Government to provide enhanced security measures to protect the DG and other key officials in the agency.
Adeyeye had earlier lamented the dangers faced by NAFDAC officials while combating counterfeit pharmaceuticals, renewing her call for stricter penalties, including the death sentence, against dealers in fake drugs.
She described them as “merchants of death” endangering millions of lives.
In a statement signed by its Organizing Secretary, Chief Kole Omololu, Afenifere warned that any attack on Adeyeye was an assault on national security.
The group urged President Bola Tinubu to act decisively by upgrading security around the NAFDAC DG, her family, and her operatives.
“She did not abandon a lucrative international career to be left vulnerable to assassins. She returned home to serve, and her sacrifice must be acknowledged, protected, and applauded by all discerning Nigerians,” the statement read.
Afenifere emphasised that public officials leading critical institutions, such as NAFDAC, EFCC, and NDLEA, should be provided with armored vehicles, elite security personnel, and advanced surveillance systems to deter criminal elements.
“Nigeria cannot afford to abandon those who risk everything for the greater good. If criminals sense that the state lacks the will to protect its key functionaries, impunity will reign supreme,” the group added.