Two persons arrested for purportedly operating a patent medicine store without licensed or registration and for engaging in illicit selling of pharmaceutical drugs have been remanded in prison custody by an Asaba Chief Magistrate Court while their duplicate files have been forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions for advice.
The Court presided over by Chief Magistrate S.C Okiebu remanded the two persons including a nursing mother, Mrs Ekhomu Juliet and one Oburah Emeka after ruling on an oral application by counsel to the defendants, L.C Agbata (Esq.) urging the court to struck out the charges against the accused persons on the ground of lack of jurisdiction by the court. He told the court that the offence was a Federal offence and that it was judicially wrong to arraign the defendants before the court.
Court that has the jurisdiction to entertain the matter.
Mrs. Ekhomu Juliet and Oburah Emeka whose plea was not taken were said to have been arrested on the 19th day of September, 2013 at shop A3, City Plaza along Nnebisi road and No 14, Chinedu Ezenyili Street, off Agric road respectively within the Asaba Magisterial District after their patent medicine stores were sealed up by the monitoring team from the Department of Pharmaceutical Services of the Delta State Ministry of Health for unwholesome practice and also engaging in the sales and display of prescription/ethical drugs without being duly licensed or registered.
Some of the drugs allegedly seized and recovered from their shops include several bottles and packets of high profile antibiotics including Zinat suspension, augumentin tablets and suspension, Zitromax, Ampliclox, Amoxil, Erithromycin, Misopresol and Ciprofloxcin amongst others.
According to a Police Proecutor, the offence was contrary to section 2 (1)(b) and punishable under section 3(1)(b) of the counterfeit and fake drugs nd unwholesome Processed Foods (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, Cap C34, Volume 4, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
An official of the Delta State Ministry of Health who witnessed the court proceedings warned all those engaging in the illicit displaying or selling drugs without a valid license or registration with the appropriate authority or selling drugs beyond their mandate should brace up for a clampdown from the monitoring and enforcement team from the Ministry of Health
