NAFDAC and the fake wine makers

RECENTLY, the National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) uncovered factories in the popular Cemetery Market in Aba, Abia State, where fake wines and fizzy drinks were being produced. The agency  discovered shops brimming with adulterated products from various brands and arrested ten suspects, calling for the temporary closure of the market. Addressing journalists, the director, South-East zone of the agency, Martins Iluyomade,  said that the agency acted on information by concerned citizens on the activities of the fakers in the market. His words: “What’s happening here is worse than the activities of Boko Haram. We saw how many shops were converted to manufacturing centres for the faking of wines and expensive drinks, and the revalidation of dates for expired products. We have the cooperation of the state government and, so far, we have discovered 240 shops used for this illegal manufacturing of fake consumables. Four long vehicles cannot remove what we seized from this market, which is an indication of the volume of fake products. No wonder we have all manner of health issues in the country and the funny thing is that we use our money to buy this evil. Our DG is not leaving any stone unturned in getting rid of fake products in our markets.”

Following the raids, the NAFDAC director-general,  Mojisola Adeyeye, said that the dastardly activities in the market had been going on for a long time and that those behind them operated like a cartel and threatened anyone who dared to challenge them. She said: “Over 1500 cartons of the fake and substandard products were destroyed during the operation while 300 cartons were evacuated to NAFDAC warehouse. The street value of the confiscated and destroyed fake products is estimated at over N750 million. Ten people were arrested on arrival at the scene of the crime and will be charged to court after a thorough investigation.”

This is, without doubt, a good development. Apart from committing economic sabotage and put ting the reputation of the manufacturers of the products being faked at risk, the makers of adulterated wines and soft drinks are also putting the health of the unsuspecting public in danger. There is no knowing the number of hapless Nigerians who have either been hospitalised or buried after consuming the fake products. Yet, the point has to be stated that it is the authorities that have enabled this dastardly situation through their actions and inactions. Truth be told, the regulatory agencies have been lax in recent times. Of course, to safeguard the lives of Nigerians, especially during the Yuletide, NAFDAC released an advisory enjoining Nigerians to “buy only NAFDAC-registered drinks from reputable and licensed retailers, bars and supermarkets.” It also said: “If the product is being sold well below its normal price, or doesn’t seem to include normal taxes on liquors, then it is probably fake. Check for poor quality packaging, spelling mistakes and unusually shaped bottles. Look for the contact information and address of the manufacturer. If it is missing, the alcohol is fake. Inspect the seal on the bottle. If the seal is broken or damaged, then the contents might have been interfered with and are not safe to drink. Check for fake barcodes. If you have an app on your mobile that scans barcodes, scan it and see if it is listed as the correct product. Beware of bad smells! If it smells like paint stripper or nail polish remover, then it probably is.” However, it is still a fact that like other agencies, it has not been at its monitoring and regulatory best in recent times.

Often, with only few exceptions, the agencies tasked with protecting Nigerians act like captured regulators. Fake products certainly would not thrive with strict monitoring and severe sanctions. NAFDAC therefore has to go back to the drawing board. But there are deeper issues. It looks like the

country has been thrown to the dogs with the pervasiveness of fake products. The production of fakes is almost everywhere in the country today as many resort to illegal and unorthodox means to make a living. But this is largely because productive engagements do not guarantee reasonable and meaningful life at present given the vagaries of the economic situation. Thus, while we expect the government and NAFDAC to intensify actions to stave off fake products in the country by utilising intelligence and prompt action to arrest those engaged in such criminality, it is also important to make the economic situation and processes much more amenable to and promotive of real production across the country.

The government has to make its processes much more business-friendly and not exploitative of genuine producers. That way, many more people would see the need to refrain from illegality. Needless to say, personnel of the regulatory agencies have to be above board. They must follow the rules and regulations to make Nigerians believe that acting in line with established regulations will always be preferable and more beneficial.

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