By Chuks Eke
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, on Wednesday, revealed that its security team has recovered two riffles, live cartilages, matchete and other weapons hidden by unknown persons at the drug market, Niger Bridge Head, Onitsha, Anambra State amidst the ongoing clampdown on fake and counterfeit drugs.
The agency, it would be recalled, has been at drug sections of the Onitsha bridge head drug market since February 10, 2025 as part of ongoing nationwide campaign to strengthening public health by ensuring that fake and counterfeit drugs being peddled by cartels were eradicated from the markets.
Director-General of NAFDAC, Professor Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye, who disclosed this while addressing journalists at the market, expressed surprise over the discovery which she viewed as an assasination attempt on the agency’s Director in South-east zone, Dr Martins Iluyomade who normally conduct debriefing at that particular spot on daily basis.
Adeyeye, who was represented by Iluyomade, added that their security team equally foiled two attempts made by some hoodlums to gain entrance into the stores where they parked seized drugs at Onitsha as well as arrested two suspects in connection with this development.
She, however, assured the public that the exercise would not be brought to an end abruptly because according to her, it was not targeted at any person or groups but a national assignment for the general good of the populace.
“With prompt interventions of our security, we saw and recovered dagger, machetes, two guns and riffles. All other nights, we have arrested people who try to break in and do one things or another in this market. They are in the custody and volunteering useful information,” she added.
She, however, commended the leadership of the markets for working with them throughout the period of the operations, even as she assured that some sections of the market would be reopened this week while they begin the next aspect of the exercise.
According to her, not less than 50 trailers load of counterfeit and substandard drugs discovered in the market have been moved to a safer place for further action.
