N31m Worth Of Fake Soap Inpounded In Lagos

Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) makes big catch: Impounds N31m consignment of fake soap
By IKENNA EMEWU

Saturday, October 31, 2009
This week, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) took a step further in its drive to stamp out product faking when it intercepted a container load of soap faked and imported into the country.



Alhaji Borodo, MAN president


 
http://odili.net/news/source/2009/oct/31/510.html

The product was impounded by the MAN and ECOWAS joint inter-border patrol in the wee hours of October 27 at about 1.20Am at the Seme Border.

A team of ECOWAS security patrol, MAN agencies and the police intercepted the consignment on its way to the Balogun International Market at the Trade Fair Complex Lagos. The importer, Ola Ayeni was arrested and taken to the Ijanikin ECOWAS Security Patrol area office on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway. Security authorities say the accused fake product importer would be charged to court immediately investigation by the police is concluded.

The goods valued at about N31m is a fake version of Unilever’s popular brand – Sunlight Soap which the company recently re-branded.

In his confessional statement to the security operatives, MAN said Ayeni admitted that he had intended to capitalise on the repackaging and re-launch of the product to bring in the fake ones produced outside the country.

The imported fake product was cleared in one of the ports of a West African countries and was spotted at the Aflawo and Lakonji borders before being traced to Seme where the operatives were sure it was bound for the Nigeria market.

The seizure would be about the sixth time since May this year with goods of over N800m involved.

The intensified raid of the borders is a product of an integrated effort of the ECOWAS countries in forming a joint security task force that works with the local security outfits of the member states to fight drug/product faking which the MAN spokesperson said is like a disease to the economies of the involved nations.

The latest arrest was facilitated by the ECOWAS team in conjunction with the Nigeria Police at Alagbon Close, Lagos.

MAN told press men in a chat after the arrest that it has “started the fight against product fakers who frustrate the efforts of our members to fix the nation’s economy and we can’t stop.

“We have found out that these enemies of the manufacturers and the nation are unrepentant and that is why we have stepped up the fight against their activities. We will not relent in fighting them and their plots to kill manufacturing in Nigeria. Even if these men are importing genuine products, we can’t still compare the importance and contribution of manufacturing to that of importation. But worst of all, they fake and import sub-standard and unsafe consumer goods into country thereby endangering the lives of citizens and stopping the economy from growing. You would bear me witness that a citizen who could be so heartless to fake Nigerian manufacturers’ products and take the undue profit from it cannot pay even tax to the government. In the long run, he does not only make no contribution to the economy, but also stops those that contribute. That is the reason we have resolved to fight them from all fronts.

“The good news is that the stakeholders have seen the need to tackle the problem and they are all playing key roles in making the war a big success. The police have been wonderful and even the SSS and the ECOWAS security team have all played vital roles”.

MAN advised Nigerians not to patronize these products, as they are unsafe and unknown to NAFDAC that should regulate standards and qualities to know what is safe for consumption. The body also enjoined Nigerians to assist MAN and the other agencies to stamp out this threat by reporting fakers and dealers in products that have no NAFDAC accreditation number to the police or the MAN office for appropriate action.

Poverty makes people buy cheap stuff hence the fake items. Fake soap is still better than fake drugs.

e wo tun ni fake soap?

fuckers will soon start bringing in fake condoms - if they haven't already

Yoruba fake soap importer. Another one down.

@AloyEmeka
Fake soap is not better than fake drugs. It can cause skin cancer. It can cause internal problems when soap sod/foam is swallowed by minors during bath. It can blind your eyes. It is as good/bad as fake drugs.

I tire o! Wat has tribe got 2 do wit importation of fake products? Abeg make una helep me ask am.

Tribe has got to do with it because Yoruba people always attribute fake products to Igbos. This is despite the fact that the ''my pikin'' teething powder that killed hundreds was manufactured by Yoruba, plus this very incidence, and, of course, many other unnoticed ones. My point is to emphasize that fake products can be imported by anybody.

Lol!

What do you know? It depends on the concentrations and the state of the fake ingredients. For e.g., 10 ppm of reduced lead can kill you instantly. Do you know what the fake soap contains? Do you know if there is lead, arsenite, ricin, etc in there? These are very lethal substances that act at micro amounts. I am talking from experience as an environmental chemist. OK!

Plus, the soap will definitely be cheap so each buyer will certainly purchase many at the same time. Do the math.

Remember it was imported. And they did not say it was imported from either Malasia (who also has oil) or Okitipupa.

So someone will wake up and import fake sunlight into Nigeria; this is bad.

WHAT? U kuku skin Baba, abeg go do test oo.

Lmao


Exactly.


Bros, to pun sweet u pass.

Now that it is clear that fake product importers are not only from a particular tribe, can we move on to not being tribalistic when issues like these come on ?   

Thank God it was intercepted.

better bring in your genuine durex when next you're coming home