Pharmacy Council Of Nigeria denies ‘misleading report’ on fake medicines, demands retraction

The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has issued a strong rebuttal to what it refers to as a mis­leading report that was broadcast on a national television.

The report inaccurately claimed that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) had implicat­ed the PCN in the distribution of counterfeit medicines.

The PCN stressed that these allegations are unfounded and urged the public to disregard the misinformation, reports Daily Independent.

In a press statement released Monday, the PCN expressed shock over the report titled “NAFDAC Implicates Pharmacy Council of Nigeria In Fake Medicines”, describing it as a gross misrep­resentation of the remarks made by NAFDAC’s Director-General during a press interview aired on March 1, 2025.

The statement which was signed by Pharm. Ibrahim Ba­bashehu Ahmed, Registrar/ CEO, Pharmacy Council of Ni­geria (PCN), the Council insisted that the DG’s comments were misinterpreted and taken out of context.

PCN stressed that DG’s com­ments were misinterpreted and taken out of context in violation of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, which mandates broad­casters to present news factually and fairly.

According to the PCN, a careful review of the interview confirms that at no point did the NAFDAC DG accuse the Council of any wrongdoing. Instead, the interview underscored the com­plementary roles of both agencies in regulating medicines and com­bating counterfeit drugs.

The DG also provided historical context regarding the regulation of Patent and Proprietary Medicines Ven­dors (PPMVs), highlighting past inconsistencies that contributed to challenges in drug distribution.

The PCN emphasised its longstanding collaboration with NAFDAC, citing their joint efforts in shutting down illegal drug markets, including the recent closure of the Sabon Gari Open Drug Market in Kano and the re­location of vendors to the Coor­dinated Wholesale Centre (CWC).

The Council further detailed its achievements in tackling unreg­ulated medicine sales, including the closure of over 50,000 illegal drug outlets nationwide.

Expressing disappointment in the reportage, the PCN demand­ed an immediate retraction of the misleading headline and a public apology from the television sta­tion. It also called on the media to adhere to ethical journalism stan­dards, particularly when report­ing on matters of public health.

The Council reassured Nigeri­ans of its commitment to ensuring safe and effective pharmaceutical services while continuing its col­laborative efforts with NAFDAC and other stakeholders to protect public health.

Meanwhile, the PCN expects that NAFDAC’s DG will clarify the misinformation, urging the public to rely on factual reports rather than misleading headlines.

The statement partly reads: “The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has taken notice of a misleading re­port by Africa Independent Tele­vision (AIT) with the headline ‘NAFDAC Implicates Pharmacy Council Of Nigeria In Fake Med­icines’. “This headline is a gross misrepresentation of the infor­mation conveyed during a press interview by the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) aired on Sat­urday, 1 March, 2025.

“Every attentive listener with proper understanding of the com­munication by the DG will real­ise that the broadcast station has erred. “This unfortunate action of the television station contradicts the Nigeria Broadcasting Code (6th Edition, 2016), specifically Section 5.0, subsection 5.1.2:

“A Broadcaster shall present news as factual and in a correct and fair manner without: Distor­tions, exaggerations or misrepre­sentations; Material omissions; or Interpretations.

“Only a biased listener will agree with this headline bar which clearly contradicts the voice message. The headline bar presents a distorted version of the information conveyed by the NAFDAC DG.”

The statement also reads, “The PCN is taken aback by the unprofessional act from one of the foremost television station in this misrepresentation of facts. We ex­pect an immediate retraction and a public apology.

“For emphasis, in the said press interview, the content of which is available in public do­main, the DG clearly did not in any way implicate the PCN in any wrongdoing whatsoever. Apart from highlighting the com­plementary role of both agencies, the DG further delved into the historical perspective of how the Patent and Proprietary Medicines Vendors (PPMVs), which was cre­ated by statute to be a stop-gap to provide over-the-counter medi­cines in underserved areas, later became a problem as a result of the inconsistencies in the delega­tion of authority for regulating the PPMVs, as well as litigations that followed same.

“The PCN clearly appreciates the collaborative relationship with NAFDAC, which resulted in the closure of the Sabon Gari Open Drug Market in Kano and the relocation of same to the Coordinated Wholesales Centre (CWC). Let it be on record that the establishment of CWC, being an alternative facility where the mar­keters are moved to, rests square­ly with the PCN. The Council has never relented in pursuing this goal jointly with NAFDAC.

“Putting the DG’s interview in proper perspective, it can only be appropriately interpreted as the DG recognising that the Open Drug Market ought not to have been created in the first instance, except for the removal of regu­lation of the PPMVs from PCN at various times during which it was given to the States and later to the 774 local government coun­cils. All these anomalies of the past led to the degradation of the system, even before the authority was finally reverted to PCN by the federal government.

“Many took advantage of the situation during the era that the inconsistencies existed and erroneously assumed that med­icine vending is a form of trade and means of livelihood, thereby ushering in the chaotic situation that persisted for a long time.”

The statement further reads, “This was in addition to a myri­ad of litigations at the instance of the medicine vendors, which were finally tackled by the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria in 2017, after which the Council resumed full-scale enforcement on illegal shops and premises. It is worthy of note that the passage of the PCN Act 2022 and regulations made there­under contributed in no small measure in strengthening the pharmaceutical regulatory pro­cess in the country.

“Between then and now, our enforcement activity has led to the closure of over 50,000 illegal medicine facilities, in addition to the closure of Sabon Gari Open Drug Market where 1,321 illegal premises were dislodged, as well as the closure of Gombe Open Drug Market and Kaduna, singlehandedly by PCN. PCN is also closely collaborating with NAFDAC in the ongoing enforce­ment to ensure compliance with regulatory standards in the Open Drug Markets in Lagos, Onitsha, and Aba.”

In addition, the statement reads, “The PCN plays a critical role in the promotion of public health at all times. Only last week, our officers embarked on a com­prehensive surveillance operation in the FCT during which they visited 230 Estates to close down all illegal premises and 3 PPMVs in these locations. “We will contin­ue to work collaboratively with NAFDAC and other stakeholders to achieve this goal. Our distinct but complementary mandates are critical in ensuring the safety and well-being of the Nigerian public.

“While NAFDAC is responsible for drug registration and product quality, the PCN is responsible for regulating and controlling of the training and practice of pharma­cy in all aspects and ramifications, including pharmacy technicians and patent and proprietary med­icines vendors.

“We urge the general public to disregard this misrepresentation of facts by the alleged broadcast station and to have recourse to the interview granted by the DG NAFDAC. We believe that DG NAFDAC will clarify the misin­formation.

“While we appreciate the fact that we are worthy part­ners with the national daily, we call on it to issue an immediate and prominent retraction and correction of the misleading headline and report.

“We also de­mand a public apology, at the same level of prominence, for the dam­age caused to PCN’s reputation by the misrepresentation.

“The public is hereby assured that the PCN remains committed to transparency and accountabil­ity in its operations and will con­tinue to work tirelessly to ensure public health and safety in the provision of pharmaceutical services. “We urge the media to uphold the highest standards of accuracy and fairness in their reporting in accordance with the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, particularly on matters of public health,” the statement added.