The Nigeria Customs Service reportedly destroyed 96 containers of various illicit and expired drugs worth N12.8bn in Lagos State.
This was made known by Adonye Dappa-Williams, the Assistant Comptroller General of Customs while addressing journalists in the Epe area of the state during the destruction of the contrabands.
According to Adonye Dappa-Williams, the goods were brought for destruction after court condemnation.
Dappa-Williams said destroying the illicit products would discourage the importation and consumption of the products, adding that the importers of these products would soon be made to face the full wrath of the law.
On why the volume was much, he said, “It has to do with the guideline that the importation of pharmaceutical products is restricted to very few ports. And that is why the strength of the pharmaceuticals coming here is high; it is purely restricted and it can’t come through any other port. That is why all our destruction has taken place here.”
A total of 16 brands of illicit and expired drugs brought for destruction included tramadol tablets, codeine cough syrup, diclofenac tablets and injections, pramo sex, yagra tablets, black cobra tablets, sildenafil citrate tablets and chaka pain extra tablets, mebendazole tablets, royal chest lung tablets, Dr. ibramol tablets, omeprazole capsules, and cotrimoxazole tablets, diavita loperamide capsules, diarrhoea stop, and chlorpheniramine malfate capsules.
Speaking further, Dappa-Williams said, “We also have other products that failed to meet the statutory import guidelines for destruction. The aforementioned items have all been condemned by courts of competent jurisdiction with a duty paid value of N12.9bn”