Onitsha drug market hands over N435m fake, expired drugs to NAFDAC

The Onitsha drug market, popularly known as Ogbogwu Market at Bridge Head in Onitsha, Anambra State, on Monday handed over substandard and falsified drugs worth N435 million to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for destruction.

The Caretaker Committee Chairman of the market, Mr Chukwuleta Ndubisi, who performed the handover of the 192 items of substandard and expired drugs, said traders voluntarily submitted the products to the market leadership as part of a collective effort to rid the market of substandard and falsified medicines.

He said more than 400 cartons of adulterated drugs were recovered between December 2025 and June 2026.

Ndubisi commended the market task force and members of the market executive for supporting efforts to sanitise the market and eliminate fake drugs.

According to him, “The primary aim of my being chairman is to sanitise the drug market. I came with a revolution, and some traders feel that I am causing inconveniences for them. That is why they keep attacking me from different sides. Even now, we are in Enugu, but thank God we are winning the battle.”

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The Deputy Director in charge of Investigation and Enforcement, South-East and South-South Directorates of NAFDAC, Mr Omoyeni Tunji, expressed appreciation to the market leadership for working in synergy with the agency to curb the circulation of fake drugs.

He said the seized items would be taken to the agency’s dump site in Awka for destruction.

Tunji also commended the leadership of NAFDAC and the Federal Government for remaining at the forefront of the fight against falsified and counterfeit drugs across the country.