The Onitsha Drug Market, popularly known as Ogbogwu Market at Bridge Head, Onitsha, has handed over counterfeit, expired and substandard medicines worth about ₦435 million to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for destruction, in one of the biggest voluntary clean‑up actions by traders in recent years.
The consignment, made up of 192 different items and over 400 cartons of adulterated pharmaceutical products, was surrendered by traders as part of a deliberate push to sanitise the market and remove fake medicines from circulation.
Speaking at the handover ceremony on Monday, July 6, Caretaker Committee Chairman Mr Chukwuleta Ndubisi said the products were recovered between December 2025 and June 2026 through coordinated market surveillance and internal enforcement led by traders and the market authorities.
Ndubisi explained that traders chose to submit the counterfeit products after a collective decision to clean up the market and protect public health from dangerous medicines.
He said, “My primary aim as chairman is to sanitise the drug market. I came with a revolution, and while some traders believe the reforms are inconveniencing them and have continued to oppose me from different angles, we are winning the battle.”
The chairman commended members of the market taskforce and executive for their support and commitment, saying sustained cooperation from traders was essential to keeping fake and substandard drugs out of shops and pharmacies around Bridge Head.
For many in Onitsha, the action shows that the market—once notorious for cheap but dangerous drugs—is now being pushed toward stricter standards, even if some traders still resist the changes.
NAFDAC To Destroy ₦435m Worth of Fake Medicines
Receiving the items on behalf of NAFDAC, Deputy Director in charge of Investigation and Enforcement for the South‑East and South‑South regions, Mr Omoyeni Tunji, praised the market’s leadership and traders for supporting the agency’s clampdown on counterfeit medicines.
Tunji explained that the seized products would be transported to NAFDAC’s dump site in Awka for destruction, under procedures designed to ensure that none of the drugs re‑enter circulation through back channels.
He reiterated that the agency remains committed to shielding Nigerians from harmful, falsified and substandard pharmaceutical products that can cause treatment failures, serious side effects or death.
He also commended NAFDAC’s leadership and the Federal Government for continuing nationwide efforts to eliminate fake drugs, saying such partnerships with major markets are critical to success.
Public health advocates point out that when a market like Ogbogwu voluntarily hands over counterfeit stock and works with regulators, it reduces the supply of dangerous medicines and sends a strong message to other drug hubs about the cost of ignoring safety rules.
