The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof Moji Adeyeye, has said the fines of N300,000 for smugglers of controlled substances like Tramadol and codeine is not enough to deter those involved.

She called on the Federal Government to come up stiffer penalties for drug smugglers stressing that their actions had caused the death of many Nigerians.


Adeyeye spoke during a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday as part of activities marking ‘Drug Abuse Awareness Day.’

The NADFAC boss said, “A few days ago, a court gave a peddler of Tramadol five years in prison with the option of paying N300,000.

“This is the most ludicrous sentence for somebody that brought Tramadol into our country in order to destroy our children. Giving such a person the option of paying a fine of less than $1,000 is wrong.”

Adeyeye lamented that over 40 trucks of codeine and Tramadol had been impounded this year, the highest in the history of NAFDAC.

Adeyeye called on parents and religious institutions to do more to discourage youths from abusing drugs, especially controlled substances.

She also called for the creation of more rehabilitation centres to cater for drug addicts.

She added, “We don’t have enough rehabilitation centres for our youths and people that are addicted to drugs. Right now, we have just about 10 centres in the country. We need like 10 centres in each geo-graphical zone. So, we need to provide more rehabilitation centres.”

Responding to a question on which state had the highest prevalence of drug abuse, the NAFDAC boss said a survey was underway, adding that some young pharmacists had already begun distributing questionnaires in various schools and vocational centres across the country.


Adeyeye, who announced a ban on the importation and production of codeine-based syrup in April, noted that the price of the substance increased astronomically.

She added, “The drugs are available (in the black market) because after the ban, it went underground. So, something that used to cost N1,000 now costs about N6,000.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/06/nafdac-flays-n300000-fine-for-drug.html

Na drug dealers wey una wan charge with this meager amount?? SMH

Shithole country