NIGERIA’S drug enforcement agency is calling for life imprisonment or the death penalty for those involved in the trade of counterfeit medicines and illegal pharmaceutical drugs, as the country undertakes its largest-ever crackdown on fake medications, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
According to Mojisola Adeyeye, Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the latest operation has led to seizures of counterfeit and improperly stored vaccines, prescription drugs, expired condoms, and USAID-donated antiretroviral medicines.
Authorities also confiscated Tafrodol, a banned opioid, and oxytocin injections, which are used during childbirth but were found stored in unsafe conditions.
Fake drug trade poses serious health risks
Nigeria has battled counterfeit drug circulation for years, particularly in anti-malaria medication, antibiotics, and painkillers, according to NAFDAC. The informal markets, where many Nigerians purchase medicines without prescriptions, are a major source of fake or substandard pharmaceuticals.
The latest crackdown, launched on February 9, targets Lagos, Anambra, and Abia—regions known for large-scale drug distribution.
Adeyeye revealed that some seized products were stored in high temperatures, stacked in toilets, staircases, and rooftops, in violation of cold chain storage requirements needed to maintain medicine potency.
Call for harsher penalties against drug counterfeiters
Adeyeye has urged lawmakers to fast-track amendments to Nigeria’s drug laws, introducing stricter penalties, including life imprisonment and capital punishment for those found guilty of manufacturing or distributing counterfeit medicines.
‘These crimes put millions of lives at risk, and stronger deterrents are necessary,’ Adeyeye said in a statement.
While armed robbery, murder, treason, and terrorism already carry the death penalty in Nigeria, such sentences have often been commuted to life in prison since 2016. If passed, the proposed law could make drug counterfeiting one of Nigeria’s most severe offenses.
As the government ramps up its fight against fake drugs, the focus remains on protecting public health and ensuring the availability of safe, regulated pharmaceuticals in a country of over 200 million people.
