Reps Demand Action Against Indiscriminate Drugs Sales

House of Representatives has urged the federal government through the Ministry of Health to develop a prescription policy to check the indiscriminate sales of drugs in the country.

The House, which insisted enforcing such policy, asked the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria to urgently close all illegal outlets of pharmaceutical products including open drug markets.

It charged the ministry to ensure that only prescribed drugs are administered to patients by qualified health practitioners and sanction erring pharmaceutical outlets.

The House further urged the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to collaborate with the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Ministry of Information and National Orientation to continuously create public awareness about drug abuse.

These resolutions followed the adoption of a motion titled, „Need to Curb Indiscriminate Sale of Drugs and Lack of Adherence to Prescription Policy in Nigeria“ sponsored by Hon Adamu Ibrahim Gamawa from Bauchi.

Gamawa noted the lack of a prescription policy on drug and indiscriminate drug sales by druggists, pharmacists, patent medicine dealers, and street vendors, staffed by unqualified personnel which ultimately leads to antibiotic resistance and drug abuse.

The lawmaker expressed concern that a large percentage of drug abuse in Nigeria are prescription drugs obtained without proper prescription.

He was worried that most of the drugs sold by illiterate and semi-literate drug hawkers are counterfeit, substandard or expired, and therefore do not meet the quality, safety and efficacy requirement of regulated medicines.

Meanwhile, the House mandated its Committee on National Planning and Economic Development to review the need for exemption of some government institutions from the envelope regime on the national budgetary system.

The committee is also to investigate beneficiaries of the national budget to determine their respective funding structure in accordance with the relevant laws and authorisations.

It is to further review the budget ceiling and develop a resource framework, document all findings and submit to the House, for further legislative action(s).

This followed the adoption of a motion moved by Hon Ibrahim Ayokunle Isiaka from Ogun State who observed that the recent clinical examination reveals that there is no law conferring entitlement or excluded some beneficiaries from the national budget.

He said the House was cognizant of the clamour by some government institutions to be exempted from the envelope system in the budgetary allocations.