By Chimaobi Nwaiwu

Nnewi-The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA, National Orientation Agency, NOA, and Christabell International Organisation, CIO, have unanimously agreed that about 70 percent of all the drugs in Nigerian markets are fake and substandard.

They also agreed that all criminalities and societal ills raving Nigeria are linked to sales and consumption of hard drugs and illicit substances.

In addition, they observed that production and importation of substandard drugs in Nigeria are major causes of high mortality rate, morbidity, and loss of public confidence in the health sector.

Speaking during a sensitisation workshop organised by Christabell International Organisation, CIO, for the Onitsha Branch of the National Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers, NAPMED, the representatives of the government agencies and the organiser said something urgent should be done to address the problem.

Deputy State Commander, NDLEA, Anambra State, in charge of Operations and Intelligence, Adewumi Alfred, said the proliferation, consumption, and abuse of illicit drugs are high in Nigeria, adding that recent report revealed that about 70 per cent of all the drugs in the market are fake.

He said: "In every ten drugs you buy, there is a high probability that seven of them are fake. If that is not alarming, I don't know what can be alarming in Nigeria, there is also a further research work that shows that in the South East, the number of deaths as a result of fake drugs is escalating.”

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