Adeyanju Urges Tinubu to Declare State of Emergency on Fake Drugs, Calls for NAFDAC, SON DGs’ Sack

Human rights lawyer and public affairs commentator, Deji Adeyanju, Esq., has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency over the proliferation of counterfeit and substandard drugs and other consumer products in Nigeria.

Adeyanju, in a statement, described the alarming prevalence of fake and substandard products across the country as evidence of what he termed a serious collapse of regulatory effectiveness in critical sectors, warning that Nigerians are being exposed to dangerous products on a daily basis.

He expressed particular concern over the reported circulation and sale of counterfeit and substandard medicines, as well as unsafe consumer goods, stressing that the consequences of weak regulation could have grave implications for public health and national wellbeing.

According to him, reports of medicines being sold wholesale in open markets and under the hot sun further demonstrate the urgent need for stronger regulatory oversight and enforcement.

“No responsible government should expose its citizens to such risks and expect mortality rates not to rise,” Adeyanju warned.

He specifically criticised the performance of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), arguing that the agency appears incapable of effectively curbing the proliferation of fake and substandard products.

Adeyanju said similar concerns extend to the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and other regulatory agencies saddled with the responsibility of protecting Nigerians from harmful and unsafe products.

He therefore urged President Tinubu to take decisive action by removing the Director-General of NAFDAC and the heads of other regulatory agencies he described as having failed in their responsibilities, including SON.

The lawyer called for the appointment of competent leadership with the capacity and political will to restore effective regulation, monitoring and enforcement across the affected sectors.

Adeyanju further urged the Federal Government to immediately undertake a comprehensive review of Nigeria’s regulatory architecture, insisting that existing mechanisms must be strengthened to prevent dangerous products from reaching consumers.

He maintained that the situation requires urgent and extraordinary government intervention, rather than routine regulatory measures, given the potential consequences for the lives and wellbeing of millions of Nigerians.

“The Federal Government should, as a matter of urgency, declare a state of emergency on the proliferation of counterfeit and substandard drugs and products and undertake a comprehensive review of the country’s regulatory system,” he said.

Adeyanju stressed that Nigerians should not continue to bear the consequences of regulatory failures, calling on the Tinubu administration to act swiftly to restore public confidence in agencies responsible for safeguarding the health and safety of citizens.

“Nigerians cannot continue to pay with their lives for regulatory failure,” he added.