The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) raided Sahad stores, H-Medix, and other markets in Abuja yesterday for selling counterfeit products.
The agency equally raided H-Medix in Wuse 2 and Gwarinpa, 3rd Avenue, as well as Utako Market, all in the FCT.
During the raid at H-Medix, the agency discovered and seized counterfeit cosmetics, while fake drugs were also confiscated at Utako Market.
Mr. Embugushiki-Musa Godiya, the NAFDAC Head of Investigation and Enforcement/Federal Taskforce, FCT, Abuja, said the enforcement team had also raided Kugbo markets in Nyanya and Mararaba axes in Nasarawa State on Tuesday.
He informed the newsmen that the team also raided Wuse Market on Wednesday, seizing goods valued at millions of naira.
Godiya said that the three-day operation was carried out based on an intelligent report the agency gathered from well-meaning Nigerians.
“We have been able to successfully recover some of the counterfeit products and evacuate them for destruction. Our concern is one of the products purported to be a NIVEA-NAFDAC-regulated product, but it is not.
“The most shocking thing to me is that such substandard NIVEA cream and other cosmetics are even more expensive than the ones approved by NAFDAC. This is criminal.
“The market value of what we have seen so far for drug hawking is N5 million, and for the NIVEA products, other cosmetics and other products, including Jik bleach, Harpic toilet cleaner, and Airwick room freshener, all counterfeit in large quantity, valued at N45 million.
“The total value of all the goods seized during the operation is N50 million,” the head of operations said.
He said such counterfeit products could cause cancer in the body, damage the kidneys, and cause rashes.
He urged perpetrators of such acts to desist from them, stressing that “NAFDAC enforcement will make sure it gets to the root of the syndicate that imports these products.”
He said the agency has zero tolerance for compromised standards, adding that
“NAFDAC will arrest whoever is involved in this crime.”
He called on Nigerians to be careful with the kind of products they buy and to always watch out for the NAFDAC registration number before they buy.
Godiya also urged Nigerians to stop parroting drug hawkers for their safety, saying “people must shine their eyes before they purchase any product.”
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
