The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria has sealed 498 medicine premises across Lagos State for various regulatory breaches, including operating illegal pharmacies, unauthorised sale of controlled drugs, and failure to renew registration licences.
The exercise formed part of a week-long enforcement operation carried out in 20 local government areas across Lagos, during which 845 premises were inspected — comprising 483 pharmacies, 162 patent medicine stores, and 200 illegal medicine shops.
Addressing journalists at a press conference on Thursday at the PCN Zonal Office in Yaba, Lagos, the Head of Enforcement, Dr Suleiman Chiroma, said the operation aimed to sanitise the pharmaceutical sector and ensure strict compliance with the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (Establishment) Act No. 31 of 2022 and the National Drug Distribution Guidelines.
“Through its enforcement efforts, the PCN is making significant strides in purging the nation of unqualified medicine handlers and suboptimal storage conditions.
“We are committed to combating substandard and falsified medicinal products and protecting public safety,” Chiroma said.
He stated that out of the 845 premises inspected, 498 were sealed for contravening various sections of the law, while 29 others were issued compliance directives to correct identified irregularities.
According to him, the affected premises included 215 pharmacies, 83 patent medicine stores, and 200 illegal medicine shops.
(Punch)
