The House of Representatives Committee on Food and Drug Administration and Control has directed the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to submit a detailed account of fines collected from traders sanctioned for selling fake and substandard drugs during its recent enforcement operations on open drug markets across the country.

The directive was issued on Tuesday by the Committee’s Acting Chairman, Hon. Uchenna Okonkwo, during an investigative hearing with the Director General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, who was summoned over allegations of extortion at the Onitsha Bridge Head Market.

The resolution stemmed from a motion raised by the Committee, which expressed concern over the agency’s collection of N700,000 from thousands of traders in Lagos, Anambra, and Kano states as part of the enforcement drive.

Adeyeye was represented at the session by the Agency’s Director of Investigation and Enforcement, Shaba Mohammed, and the South East Zonal Director, Dr. Lyon Obi Martins.

Okonkwo said that though the committee appreciated NAFDAC’s efforts to clear fake drugs from circulation in the Nigerian market, it nevertheless had received several petitions from various stakeholders on recent investigative activities carried out during the general investigative operation on open drug outlets in Lagos, Anambra, and Kano.

“Such of these allegations include: the shutting down of the biggest drug market in West Africa located in Anambra State over non-compliance with the imposition of the payment of N700,000 per shop; the alleged increment from N500,000 to N700,000 per shop; and the alleged payment of N2,000,000 as administrative charges for improper storage and handling of products in Idumota, Lagos,” Okonkwo said.

He stressed there was a need to inform Nigerians on the funds that have been collected, realized, and accrued during this exercise carried out in collaboration with the National Security Adviser (NSA).

“We would move a motion that the statement of accounts be provided to the committee. Although you mentioned that it’s still ongoing, we will give you an opportunity to have an interim statement of account provided, which starts from the dates of the investigation to June 30, 2025. So, June 30, which gives you about a week or so from now to provide the accounts — statement of accounts to the committee — which states the funds that were paid, the accounts that the funds were paid to, and whatever it is that has been accrued to date,” he said.

Okonkwo also said it was imperative to make sure that the Coordinated Wholesale Centres (CWC) became a number one priority for NAFDAC and the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria in coordination with the relevant state governments, and also the traders involved.

He urged that the CWCs be built to modern satisfaction with all the necessary accommodations that would be needed in order to have a safe trading and storage environment for drugs, pharmaceuticals, and the like within Nigeria.

“That’s motion number one. And then number two should be that for our committee — the Committee on Food and Drug Administration and Control — to have a first-hand monitoring on the positioning and the structures of the build of these CWCs in the relevant states so we make sure that these things are done accordingly to what Nigerians would benefit from,” he said.

He also called for strategies to address the problems of drug kingpins who were causing problems for the Agency.

“You mentioned some kingpins within these areas of operation. And I think it’s only proper for us to investigate further and know more about this, and then see what exactly the security forces are doing in order to get these people prosecuted, because they have become a major issue.

“They are part of the problem — or rather, they are part of the problem — of getting our nation sanitized from these counterfeit drugs, substandard drugs. So I would like for us to move a motion that whatever information in which NAFDAC has been able to discover based on that, that they should be able to share that with the committee. And as well, the committee would work with the relevant security agencies to see how we can flush these people out of the system in order to have a more sanitary system within Nigeria,” he said.

The NAFDAC DG, who spoke through the Director, Investigation and Enforcement, Pharm. Shaba Mohammed, said of the N700,000 they were collecting from the traders, N500,000 was for poor storage practice and N200,000 was for the unregistered products which were found on them.

The NAFDAC boss said there were some violations that have not been implemented.

She said open drug markets across Nigeria are illegal and pose serious health risks to the public.

According to her, the operation, described as the most extensive of its kind since 2007, was launched on February 9, 2025, and was prompted by both local complaints and international pressure over the prevalence of counterfeit drugs traced to Nigeria.

“We did not just wake up and launch the operation. It was in response to growing concerns, including alerts from the World Health Organization (WHO), and complaints from both local and international stakeholders about counterfeit drugs emanating from our markets,” Adeyeye said.

She explained that the operation was preceded by consultations with the Office of the National Security Adviser and had the full backing of security agencies.

She said a total of 1,200 security personnel were deployed to enforce the operation at three major markets: the Idumota Drug Market in Lagos, Bridge 8 Market in Onitsha, and the Ariaria Market in Aba.

She said originally planned to last one week, the crackdown extended to four weeks due to the scale of the challenge. Lagos operations lasted three weeks, while enforcement in the Southeast continued for a full month.

“All shops in the identified markets were sealed, regardless of whether or not counterfeit or substandard products were found. This was necessary to ensure a thorough and effective exercise. Only shops that complied with regulatory standards were reopened after the operation,” she said.

The NAFDAC DG stressed that the very existence of these markets violated Nigerian law. Citing the Counterfeit and Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, she noted that drugs are not permitted to be sold in open markets.

“By the provisions of the law, these markets are illegal. Moreover, our inspections revealed that they do not meet the minimum requirements for the safe storage of pharmaceuticals. Many of the facilities had no ventilation, no windows, and in some cases, iron sheets were used to barricade spaces where drugs were stored. None of the products we encountered could be deemed fit for consumption,” she said.

Adeyeye revealed that all counterfeit and substandard drugs recovered during the operation were publicly destroyed. She added that NAFDAC met with executives of the various market unions prior to the raid to inform them of the agency’s intentions and protocols for the enforcement.