The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) states that it has sealed 317 illegal shops dispensing drugs, and arrested five individuals for breaking the PCN seal in Rivers State.

According to the PCN, the feat was recorded during a week-long enforcement exercise in Rivers and Bayelsa States. It stated that during the exercise, a total of 618 premises were sealed in both states, comprising 178 pharmacies, 123 patent medicine shops, and 317 illegal shops for various offences, while nine premises were issued compliance directives. It said that of the number, 536 closures were made in Rivers State, while 82 were in Bayelsa State.

The Registrar/Chief Executive Officer of PCN, represented by Dr. Suleiman Chiroma, announced over the weekend in Port Harcourt that the enforcement exercise targets key areas of pharmaceutical practice, premises, and personnel to ensure compliance with the minimum standards for quality assurance outlined in the PCN Establishment Act 2022 and relevant Regulations and Guidelines. He stated that the standards enforced cover professional ethics, maintaining well-regulated environments to preserve the quality and potency of medicines, and the expertise levels of personnel engaged in the practice.

“The PCN, in her effort to achieve her mandate and to rid the nation of substandard and falsified medicines, has been carrying out an enforcement exercise concurrently in Rivers and Bayelsa states since the beginning of the week.

“The pharmaceutical landscape in Nigeria has been bedevilled with chaotic drug distribution, unlicensed/illegal premises, handling of medicines by unauthorised persons, among others, and these necessitated this action.

“Medicines are poisons and must be regulated; hence, the need for every person involved in handling medicine to be appropriately trained, while all premises dispensing, selling, storing, stocking, retailing, wholesaling, manufacturing, importing, and exporting medicines must be inspected, approved, licensed and monitored to ensure public safety.

“During the week-long rigorous enforcement exercise in Rivers State, the following Local Government Areas (LGAs) were visited: Port Harcourt, Obio-Akpor, Ikwerre, and Etche. In Bayelsa State, Yenagoa and Southern Ijaw were also visited. A total number of 867 premises were visited in both Rivers and Bayelsa States, comprising 344 pharmacies and 523 patent medicine stores. We arrested five persons for breaking the PCN seal.

“A total number of 618 premises were sealed in both states, which comprised 178 pharmacies, 123 patent medicine shops, and 317 illegal shops for various offences, while nine premises were issued compliance directives,” he said.

The PCN Registrar/CEO mentioned that offences committed included operating illegal premises/shops, non-renewal of premises registration, carrying out clinical practice without a licence, access to controlled medicines by unauthorised persons, over-stocking beyond the Approved Patent Medicine List, training of apprentices without a licence, and retailing by wholesale premises without a licence.

He also noted that a concerning trend observed during this exercise in Rivers State is the unfettered access to controlled medicines in the poison cupboard by non-pharmacist staff in pharmacies. “This practice is highly unethical and unacceptable and as such allows medicines to fall into the hands of unauthorised persons for misuse, posing a security risk to the general public,” he continued.

The PCN urged residents of both Bayelsa and Rivers states to be cautious about where they obtain their medicines to prevent falling into the hands of untrained individuals, and to report such persons to the PCN State offices in their respective states. “The public can identify genuine pharmacies/PPMVs by their respective licences being clearly displayed on the premises,” he stated. (The Guardian)