By ERICJAMES OCHIGBO

The South-East Caucus in the House of Representatives has urged the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to consider re-opening the Onitsha bridgehead market in Anambra.

Leader of the caucus, Rep. Igariwey Enwo (APC-Ebonyi), made the call at a news conference held at the National Assembly Complex on Tuesday in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that NAFDAC had recently sealed over 4,000 shops in Onitsha, 3,027 in Lagos and 4,000 in Aba since it commenced its ongoing nationwide operations.

NAN also reports that the operation was as part of the agency?s clampdown on fake and substandard medicines in the country.

Speaking at the news conference, Enwo said that the caucus unequivocally condemned the nefarious activities of unscrupulous traders in the market.

He said that the caucus also frowned at the activities of some businessmen and women who engaged in production and distribution of fake and adulterated drugs.

The lawmaker said that the activities of the business men and women did not only negatively affect public health, but had also directly or indirectly led to loss of lives.

He described those involved in such activities as ?death merchants and economic saboteurs?, as their activities were not open to government scrutiny and taxation.

Enwo, on behalf of the caucus, also commended NAFDAC for its intervention in halting the activities of the ?merchants of death all over the country?.

He, however, urged the agency not to punish the innocent and genuine traders as well as drug users alongside the criminal elements.

According to him, sealing of the entire market has done huge collateral damage on the entire country, particularly on medicine users in the South-East and South-South zones.

?While we are mindful of NAFDAC?s statutory role in curbing and stamping out fake drugs in the country, we urge it to quickly arrest and prosecute those responsible for the production and distribution of these fake drugs.

?However, the wholesome and indefinite sealing of a market that caters for over 90 per cent of the medication needs of the South-East and South-South regions may not be the best approach.

?This is more so when it is considered that many of the other traders in the same market are actually genuine business men and women.

?This is to avoid a situation of visiting collective punishment on all the traders in Onitsha bridgehead market which is currently in a state of lockdown, considering the wider collateral effect of the lockdown on the health needs of the larger population,? he said.

Enwo urged NAFDAC to quickly resolve the situation by prosecuting the offenders and sanitise the entire medical ecosystem across the country.

He also called on Nigeria Customs Service to stand up to its responsibilities of ensuring that the land, sea and air borders were better protected to nip in the bud the influx of fake and adulterated drugs into the country. (NAN)

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