FG to Obi; When Have You Turned Into A Private Investigator?
Says guilty traders in the market should be in jail for crimes against humanity,
By Biola Lawal
Abuja (Flowerbudnews): The Presidency has thrown its weight behind the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in its ongoing unprecedented enforcement operations designed to crush counterfeiters and fake drug peddlers across the country.
Flowerbudnews recall that the NAFDAC operations had resulted in the closure of some markets in the South East and South West of Nigeria, including the Onitsha Bridge Head Market suspected of being another hub for the manufacturing and peddling of adulterated medicines and beverages.
In a statement by the Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, the Presidency
questioned the particular interest of Mr. Peter Obi in the market closure, and berated him for his insistence on the reopening of the Onitsha Bridge Head market.
Olusegun said that, Obi, who was the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 Presidential Election, should ”be more interested in protecting the lives and health of millions of Nigerians,” charging him to allow the professionals do their work.
Following the closure of the Onitsha Bridge Head Market by NAFDAC, Obi had urged that it should be reopened to allow concerned traders and shop owners make a living and survive.
According to Obi, the decision by the regulatory body and security agencies to close the market totally was affecting innocent traders who make a living from the market. He demanded
He insinuated that the closure was able to happen ”because those in government and at the helm of affairs taking such decisions don’t own or manage businesses and don’t understand how micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) operate.”
However, Olusegun stressed the need to allow the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to do its work without unnecessary interference.
He emphasized the need to protect Nigerians from consuming fake and harmful food, drugs and other items.
The aide asked Peter Obi to explain to Nigerians why he rushed to the market to obstruct NAFDAC from combating the activities of some traders involved in selling illicit, substandard and unhealthy items to unsuspecting members of the public.
Olusegun wrote: “I have resisted the urge to dabble into the ongoing populistic patronage of Mr Peter Obi over the past few months but in cases where lives and properties of millions of Nigerians are concerned, every sane Nigerian must speak up else we are one step away from being exterminated due to consumption of fake foods, drugs and other items.
“You of all person must understand what the jurisdictions of @nafdacnigeria are and that beyond drugs, they are in charge of ensuring everything we consume directly including foods items, beverages, water etc are vetted and deemed safe for consumption.
“When have you turned into a private investigator or an intelligence officer to conclude which sections of the Onitsha Bridge Head market are involved in unwholesome practices?
”Or are you more interested in protecting the livelihood of some traders some of who should be in jail for crimes against humanity than protecting the lives and health of millions of Nigerians you aspire to become their president one day?
“Nigerians will like to know why you rushed to Onitsha to obstruct NAFDAC from carrying out their legitimate work of combating illicit drugs and substandard and unhealthy foods.
”Someone or some people might think you are trying to shield fake drug dealers who have put the lives of millions of Nigerians at risk as a result of their nefarious and conscienceless criminal activities.
“Dear Mr Peter Obi, kindly search your Conscience,” the Presidential aide concluded. (FLOWERBUDNEWS)
