The
Director, Special Duties of the National Agency for Foods and Drugs
Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned Nigerians on the
consumption of fake unregistered alcoholic drinks, especially dry gin in
the markets.
The National Agency for Foods and Drugs Administration and Control
(NAFDAC) has alerted Nigerians of the prevalence of fake alcoholic
drinks, especially dry gin in the nation’s markets.
Dr. Abubakar Jimoh, its Director, Special Duties, told the News
Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos on Tuesday that the agency had continued
to advise consumers of alcoholic beverages to be alert and be wary of
fake and unregistered drinks.
“Drinking alcohol is bad enough and people are always advised
to take it in moderation; so, the danger associated with taking a fake
drink can only be imagined,” he said.
Jimoh said that the agency had taken its campaign against fake
drinks to Plateau, Gombe, Benue, Bauchi and many other states in north,
and had engaged traditional and religious leaders to lead the efforts.
He particularly decried the rampant consumption of drinks like “Ogogoro” (dry gin) and “Goskolo” by youths, and urged stakeholders to join in the fight “especially since the youths are the group most affected”.
“We have found that the youths rely on such drinks to gather
enough courage to commit all manners of atrocities like armed robbery,
kidnapping, rape, killing and the rest.
"We have, therefore, continued to intensify our campaigns and
that has resulted into some states coming up with bylaws that banned
some alcoholic beverages.
"We have also raided production and drinking points of some of
these dangerous drinks, especially in Edo and Delta States, because the
drinks have damaged many livers, kidneys and other vital organs of the
body.
"They have also led to the gradual decline in the health status
of many youths and totally destroyed their capacity to contribute to
societal development,” he said.
Jimoh said that the drinks issue required special attention,
especially now that government was asking Nigerians to go back to the
farm in efforts to diversify the economy. “Farming requires a lot of
energy – which is the asset of youths. The drinks destroy that energy,
hence the need to rid society of them,” he said.
The NAFDAC official explained that it was usually difficult to distinguish between the fake and genuine drinks because
“many producers usually gather empty bottles with NAFDAC-approved
badges and pour the fake contents into them”. “Our advice is that the
consumers must always be on the watch-out,” he said.
He called for more proactive steps from governors to protect
members of the public, and alleged that most governors had always paid
lip service to the campaign against fake drugs and drinks.
Jimoh expressed satisfaction over the agency’s achievements in its war against counterfeit drinks and drugs. “The prevalence rate used to be 16.7%, now we have battled it down to 3.4% and shall never relent in the war,” he added.
Source: News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
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