The House of Representatives Committee on National Agency on Food, Drugs Administration, and Control (NAFDAC) has directed the suspension of the ban imposed on the sale of spirits and alcoholic drinks in sachets and pet bottles.
Chairman, House Committee on NAFDAC, Rep. Regina Akume, who stated this in Abuja after a public hearing on the NAFDAC ban, said the suspension was pending the outcome of its investigation on the matter. She said there were proper steps to take before the ban, stressing the need to put access control procedures in place.
This, according to her, was to prevent children and youths from consuming the alcoholic contents of the sachet and pet bottles. She said the committee was entrusted with the essential responsibility and effectiveness of NAFDAC for the creation of employment and enhancing economic growth.
She promised to reach a level-playing ground between NAFDAC and manufacturers that would not be detrimental to children or public safety.
Speaking earlier, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, Director General, NAFDAC, said the ban was imposed to protect the health and welfare of children, youths, and others.
She said, “We tried to protect the market. That was why we agreed to a five-year moratorium for the manufacturers to phase out sachet alcohol and alcohol in pet bottles in December 2018.
According to her, it was a ministerial directive and not unilaterally made by NAFDAC, and the expiration of that five-year period has come.
She said that, in spite of the agreement on the ban on sachet alcohol and pet bottles, it was shocking to NAFDAC that the campaign from manufacturers was mounting.
She said that a lot of issues could have been solved before now, adding that the agency was not against the production of alcohol but alcohol in sachets and pet bottles to wade off children from unnecessary access.
“WHO had a resolution in 2010 in which Nigeria was a co-singer that each country will have alcohol that is less reachable and less accessible to the youth, and nothing has been done about that until now.
“It is very unfortunate we are where we are now, because the children who are used to taking alcohol will also become vulnerable to drug abuse.”
She said that as a result of the sachet of alcohol, insecurity is being breached, adding that “30 percent of our children now take alcohol casually.”
She, however, said that the market that was going to be lost, as expressed by the manufacturer, would be about 30 percent because such could be easily concealed in the pocket.
Director General, Manufacturer Association of Nigeria, Segun Ajayi kadilimni, however, said that there was no major basic disagreement with NAFDAC.
He added that they were committed to protecting the youth and children from accessing alcohol.
He said they were the major, but the issue remained how to get there, saying, “We have realized that there is a process to get there, and banning the product will be counterproductive.
According to him, this is because you are going to open the market to producers of illicit drugs, and these are people you cannot control.
“I believe if we work together, we will be able to eradicate underage access. These sachets are not produced for children but for adults, and they have been warned not to consume them.
The Committee, however, moved for the suspension of the NAFDAC ban pending the outcome of its investigation and duly adjourned its proceedings sine die.
