By Hassanat Adebowale
The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Mojisola Adeyeye, has called for the death penalty for those involved in the sale of counterfeit drugs. Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Friday, Adeyeye argued that only severe penalties would deter drug peddlers, particularly when their actions result in the deaths of children.
Adeyeye shared an alarming incident where a children’s medicine sold for N13,000 had a counterpart being sold for N3,000 in the same mall. Testing at NAFDAC’s Kaduna lab revealed that the cheaper medicine contained no active ingredients. “You don’t need to put a gun to a child’s head to kill them. Just give them bad medicine,” she stated, calling for the death penalty for such offenders.
The NAFDAC boss emphasized the need for cooperation from the judiciary and the National Assembly to make this proposal a reality. She expressed the agency’s willingness to work with lawmakers and other stakeholders to enforce stricter penalties for those dealing in fake drugs.
“You cannot fight substandard and falsified medicines in isolation. The agency can only do so much, but if there is no deterrent, there will be a problem,” Adeyeye said. She highlighted an example where someone brought in 225mg of Tramadol, which can be lethal, and the punishment for such an offense was merely five years in prison or a fine of N250,000. “Who doesn’t know that a person can simply withdraw N250,000 from an ATM?” she questioned.
Adeyeye highlighted the need for stricter measures to prevent offenders from repeating the same crime. “We can only do so much, but if our laws are not strong enough or the judiciary is not firm in its stance, we will continue to face this challenge. So, our judicial system must be strong enough. We are working with the National Assembly to make our penalties much stiffer. But if you kill a child with bad medicine, you deserve to die,” she concluded.
NAFDAC’s efforts to tackle the issue of counterfeit drugs have been ongoing, with the agency sealing 250 factories producing fake products, including Hennessy and Coca-Cola, in Abia State. Adeyeye’s call for the death penalty has stirred debate among stakeholders, with some supporting the stringent measure while others call for a more balanced approach.
GI’s Legal Corner
In Nigeria, selling and distributing fake drugs is a crime under the Counterfeit and Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act. Right now, the penalties are fines and prison time, but there’s no death penalty for these offenses.
The death penalty in Nigeria is only for serious crimes like murder, armed robbery, and treason, according to the Criminal Code and Penal Code. To introduce the death penalty for drug-related offenses, there would need to be a constitutional amendment or new legislation from the National Assembly. This change would likely spark debates about legal and ethical issues, especially concerning human rights and Nigeria’s international commitments. But supporters argue that the severe public health risks from counterfeit drugs justify the harshest penalties to protect people.
Dear readers, we really need your support to keep on serving you with authoritative, truthful, and juicy stories everyday. For your support, please reach out to the editor @gavelinternational66@gmail.com