BY EMMANUEL OLUKOTUN.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has debunked stories that it illegally imposed administrative charges on traders at the Onitsha Bridge Head drug market.

NAFDAC explained that the charges, including a controversial N700,000 fee were approved by the Federal Government after the agency discovered some irregularities at the drug market.

The clarification followed the news which had gone viral that the agency was extorting traders, demanding N700,000 from them before their shops could be reopened.

The agency, in a statement signed by the Director General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, on Tuesday, stated that the news is false and misleading.

The agency refreshed the minds of the public of the recent raid it carried out in three open drug markets at Idumota, Aba and Onitsha, where fake, expired and substandard medicines worth over a trillion naira were discovered and destroyed.

“Between 9th February and 27th March 2025, NAFDAC conducted a raid operation to remove unregistered, expired, banned, diverted donation drugs, substandard, falsified, and illicit narcotics and controlled substances from the three major Open Drug Markets (ODM) in the country.

“As a result of these infractions, NAFDAC imposed administrative charges that apply, as gazetted on perpetrators in line with Federal Government regulations

“An Investigative charge of N5 million reduced to N200,000 after pleas for sales of unregistered products”

“The public should please note, contrary to erroneous speculations, that these are Federal government gazetted charges and payments,” the statement read.