ARMSTRONG ALLAHMAGANI, Bauchi –
The Director – General, National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, has warned Nigerians to stop buying drugs that are being hawked at markets, motor parks and other public places.
She gave the warning on Tuesday at the flag off of National Public Awareness Campaign held at the Double 4 Event Center, Bauchi.
NATIONAL ACCORD reports that the public awareness is the first phase of the sensitization to be held in eight selected states across the country from August to September.
Adeyeye, who was represented by Pharmacist Fori Tatama, NAFDAC’s Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, said that the drugs could have negative effects on those who take them because they are exposed to harsh weather conditions.
“Taking these medicines that are hawked on trays and are sold at motor parks, markets and other public places are very dangerous because these people move under the sun, the rain and other harsh weather conditions.
“Drugs are not supposed to be hawked because when they move under such conditions, they get deteriorated and so they are not effective and at times, they become more harmful.
“Please, we want to urge all of you, avoid patronizing these hawkers of drugs, it is not good. When we stop patronizing them, they will be out of business but by buying drugs from them, we are only encouraging them and causing more harm to ourselves and our loved ones.
“Don’t patronize them, buy your drugs from registered premises, there are so many patent medicine stores, that are registered, please, buy your drugs from there because if something happens, you can go back and complain,” she said.
Adeyeye warned food vendors in the country to stop using poisonous chemicals to preserve food they sell to the people.
According to her, the agency has discovered that many fish and meat sellers use formalin to preserve their products even though formalin is used to preserve dead bodies, warning that the misuse of chemical on food products is capable of leading to many serious diseases and death.
She also warned that NAFDAC will not spare anyone arrested as they would face the full wrath of the law.
According to her, kilishi sellers also use snipers, a poisonous chemical, to preserve the kilishi in some parts of the country.
She said: “Snipers are not supposed to be used to preserve food items. Those in kilishi business, if you keep dry meat, flies will come, so sometimes they put the sniper around the kilishi so that the flies will not come near it.
“It is not good because if the sniper mistakenly touches the meat, it will dry with it and somebody will come and but it unknowingly and eat and you know snipers can kill. It is very, dangerous, stop that practice.”
Adeyeye expressed regret that most food vendors in the country were applying one chemical to food consumed by unsuspecting Nigerians.
She added that the agency has also uncovered the use of kerosene or fuel tankers conveying vegetable oils to the markets.
The DG said that apart from the long battle with bakers against the use of potassium bromate in baking bread because it can cause cancer and so many other diseases, the agency is also cautioning Nigerians against buying meat that flies are feeling aware from.
She stated that, “Such meats are possibly laced with dangerous chemicals that chases flies away so Nigerians must be wary,” advising Nigerians to be wary of red palm oil as traders add a dangerous chemical call azo dye to make it reddish and appealing “and if we arrest you, it will be very difficult for you to come out of it.”
The Bauchi State Director of NAFDAC, Mrs Josphine Daylin, disclosed that the agency’s national public enlightenment campaign is a multifaceted event as it will be extended to markets, shopping malls and other public places for maximum impact.
She said the development was to prevent the abuse of drugs and chemical substances capable of endangering many lives and hence should be treated with all seriousness assuring that the Agency will not relent in carrying out its mandate of controlling food and drugs for Nigerians to live healthy lives.
In a goodwill message, the Emir of Bauchi, Dr Rilwanu Suleiman Adamu, represented by the Sarakin Bauchi, Abdullahi Baba,
called on Nigerians to be responsible as no religion encourage traders to carry out activities that can lead to diseases and death.
He promised to work in partnership with NAFDAC to ensure that abusers of drugs and chemicals were stopped and brought to book.
Participants at the public enlightenment include stakeholders from security agencies, the media, corp members, patent medicine store owners, bakers, among others.
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