Customs Hands Over N5.8m Unregistered Drugs to NAFDAC in Sokoto
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Sokoto/Zamfara Area Command, has handed over seized pharmaceutical products valued at N5.8 million to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for investigation and further regulatory action.
The products were intercepted by Customs patrol teams along the Illela-Sokoto Road following what the command described as credible intelligence.
Acting Customs Area Controller, Deputy Comptroller Haliru Abdullahi, disclosed this during a handover ceremony at the command’s headquarters in Sokoto on Wednesday. He said the seizure formed part of efforts to prevent unregistered medicines from entering circulation and protect public health.
According to Abdullahi, the seized products comprised 360 packages of anti-cold drugs, 500 packages of amodiaquine, 140 packages of paracetamol and 100 packages of quinine. The total duty-paid value was put at N5,804,062.06.
He said the interception was made possible through intelligence gathering and the commitment of the command’s patrol teams. Abdullahi added that importing unregistered pharmaceutical products contravened Section 55 of the Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023, and NAFDAC regulations.
The acting controller warned smugglers and dealers in unregistered medicines to stop the illegal trade, stressing that the command would not tolerate activities that could endanger public health.
“Let me use this opportunity to warn smugglers and those who deal in such unwholesome products that the Sokoto/Zamfara Command, under my watch, will not tolerate any form of smuggling,” Abdullahi said.
He commended the officers involved in the operation and acknowledged NAFDAC’s collaboration with Customs in tackling the movement of prohibited and unregistered products.
Receiving the items on behalf of NAFDAC, the agency’s Sokoto State Coordinator, AbduSalam Lawal, praised the Customs Service for its cooperation. He said sustained collaboration between both agencies was important in preventing potentially harmful medicines from reaching consumers.
Lawal also reaffirmed NAFDAC’s commitment to ensuring that the seized products undergo the necessary regulatory processes and that cooperation with Customs continues to protect public health.