The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has deployed its officials to all ports and select markets to check for some drugs imported from China which are suspected to have been made from the flesh of babies or foetuses.
The Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, said this in a message on Friday.
Adeyeye said, “NAFDAC was informed by the Federal Ministry of Health on Thursday of some Chinese drugs that contain human remains. I immediately alerted the agency’s Ports Inspection Directorate to be on the lookout (for these) at our ports and borders since the drugs may be brought into the country as small packages.
“The Pharmacovigilance and Post-Marketing Directorate has also been alerted to conduct surveillance in our markets. The Registration and Regulatory Affairs Directorate is also on the lookout.”
Adeyeye said she had contacted her counterpart in South Korea since the news was disseminated by Nigerian and Korean intelligence agencies.
In a memo which leaked online on Thursday, the National Intelligence Agency had asked NAFDAC and other agencies such as the Standards Organisation of Nigeria and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency to be on the lookout for drugs imported from China suspected to have been made from human flesh.
The memo read in part, “The South Korean Customs Service, on September 30, 2018, revealed that it had seized 2,751 Chinese drugs/capsules, containing human remains from foetuses, infants and flesh imported into the country by some Chinese nationals.
“The manufacturers claim that the drugs/capsules can boost stamina, cure cancer, diabetes and some other terminal diseases. The capsules were smuggled in suitcases and through international mail.”
The agency revealed that South Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety indicated that 18.7 billion viruses, including hepatitis B virus were found in the capsules.
It described producing the drugs and consuming them as crimes against humanity, which could also lead to serious health challenges.
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