The phenomenon of unauthorized people selling prescription drugs in buses and along the streets is not just about breaking the law. This indiscriminate sale poses a health challenge to consumers who patronize them in spite of warnings and threats of sanctions, as SAMSON BENJAMIN points out in this report
A stern warning, “No Smoking, No Preaching, No Hawking”, is clearly written inside the luxurious buses, popularly referred to as ‘El-Rufai buses’, is the first sign one notices immediately one boards any of them. Usually, they convey thousands of commuters on a daily bases from the suburbs of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to the city centre.
Most often, their popular destinations are the ever busy Julius Berger junction and Area One bus stop. In addition, most often than not, the anti- hawking warning is often flouted with reckless abandon in almost all the buses plying different routes. Significantly, this phenomenon is a nationwide problem in Nigeria.
Drugs hawkers everywhere
Last week, Malam Mohammed Musa(not real name), narrated his experience to Blueprint Weekend. According to the commuter, the bus ‘’took off from Masaka, a town in Karu local government area of Nasarawa state, lunging into the ever busy Keffi-Abuja express way. The advertised destination according to the hollering conductors is the popular Julius Berger bus stop in the city centre.’’
As the bus approached Nyanya, a lanky man in his mid-thirties sitting directly behind the driver’s seat, stood up in the highly congested and stuffy bus, called the attention of the sweating commuters, Malam Mohammed told our correspondent. ‘’He introduced himself as a marketer. He then brought out a pack of seeds he called ‘miracle seeds’, from the bag, he carried. He reeled out numerous ailments ranging from diabetes, high blood pressure, hepatitis to typhoid fever which he claimed the miracle seeds could cure,’’ Mohammed recalled.
In a bid to persuade unsuspecting commuters, the marketer announced that the price of the seeds outside the bus ranges from N800 to N1000 but he will sell his own at a discounted prize of N300 inside the bus. ‘’Surprisingly, no fewer than 10 persons bought the so called miracle seed,’’ Mohammed said.
Encouraged by the sale of his wonder seeds, he went on to sell prescription-only antibiotics like Metronidazole, tinidazole, tetracycline, ciprofloxacin and other powerful drugs. He keeps introducing one drug after another until the bus reached its final destination.
Significantly, Mohammed’s encounter is a typical scene in commercial buses, be they El Rufai and Coaster buses, that ply the various routes within the FCT and other major cities like Lagos, Kano, Onitsha, Aba and Port Harcourt. Sadly, notwithstanding the various campaigns against self medication, the indiscriminate sale of prescription drugs is on the rise. In particular, researches by clinical pharmacists have shown that self prescription is one of the commonest forms of drug abuse in Nigeria.
Also, The Human Development Index (HDI) 2015 report attributes about 15 per cent of deaths in Nigeria to wrongly prescribed medications and expired drugs.
Customers are unimpressed
Regardless of the statistics and sensitization campaigns, those who patronise unauthorized hawkers still continue to do so across the country.
Specifically, the customers span across gender and religious lines and even educated people buy medications from these hawkers. According to Mr. John Bassey, “ we opt to patronize drug hawkers from time to time to treat ‘common’ illnesses like malaria, stomach upset and general body pains because it saves time, effort and money going in search of doctors and drug stores, as these drug hawkers are common sight and easily available in commercial buses”.
Similarly, one of the regular buyers, Mr Audu Zabi claims that condemning those that trade drugs inside public buses is like “calling a dog a bad name”. According to him, “if we have to be candid with ourselves, most pharmacy shops in Nigeria do not really have professionals at the stores. Most of them would open a pharmacy shop and put one of their brothers or sisters there to attend to people, while the owner would take another job with either government or private establishments. What would you make of this?” Mr Zabi further argued that the drugs of such unauthorised-medicine vendors are cheaper than the ones bought across the counters at patent medicine stores or pharmacies .
However, Mrs Aisha Ibrahim said the act should be banned outrightly. According to her, the customers ‘’do not understand the medical side effects attached to every drug and the adverse symptoms to those who are not permitted to take the drug.” Mrs Ibrahim also argued that “I would prefer to buy my drugs from a registered pharmacy shop, so that if anything goes wrong, I know whom to hold responsible. I hope NAFDAC will enforce the law that will stop these people from endangering our lives.”
Experts warn of grave dangers
Many unwary Nigerians have fallen and more are still falling into the traps of these unregistered ‘doctors’ and ‘pharmacists’. The Pharmacists Council of Nigeria Law No 91, 1992, makes it an offence to hawk, sell or display for the purposes of sale, any drug or poison whatsoever in any market, kiosk, motor park, roadside stall, bus, ferry or any other means of transportation or other place not duly licensed or registered for the purpose of sale and distribution of drugs or poison.
Also, medical experts warn of grave dangers in buying and taking such drugs, without doctor’s prescription and from uncertified pharmaceutical outlets.
A certified pharmacist, Mr Jerry Auta advised that medicines should not just be taken because people notice some symptoms. According to him, medications are prescribed after a pharmacist conducts tests and that ‘’it is the result of the test that the pharmacist works with to determine the medication that will suit the patients system. ”
Similarly, Dr. Ismailu Kura warned that “taking drugs that were not prescribed or from untrained people could be fatal. It can lead to death, because one may not know the authenticity of the drug they are taking. Even the dosage may be wrong.” He called for appropriate legislation and enforcement to curb the trend.
Regulatory agencies helpless
The open sale of drugs—both traditional and pharmaceutical via unregistered outlets is a major concern in Nigeria. Sadly, the abuse has continued despite the plethora of regulatory agencies created to check the menace. Prominent among them is the PCN and National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
Significantly, the Registrar of PCN, Mr. Elijah Mohammed, had in December 2016, vowed to eradicate open drug hawking by 2017, as part of efforts to regulate drug distribution system in the country.
In an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mohammed said “ that coordinated wholesale centres are currently being built in four states of the federation (Lagos, Kano, Onitsha and Aba) where open sale of drugs is predominant. Drug dealers would be relocated to the centres to enable them to carry out their activities in a coordinated manner”. He added that “ the centres would go a long way to curtail drug hawking, among others, as there would be strict regulation of drug distribution and sales at the centres”.
However, the Public Relations Officer of NAFDAC, Mr. Jimoh Abubakar sounded helpless about the sale of drugs by unauthorized people and the consumption of same by some members of the public. According to him, “ it’s an old issue. We have said times without number, since NAFDAC was created, that Nigerians should not patronise them because of the health hazards”. Abubakar further said that “ findings from the agency revealed that many deaths and complications have been caused by unregistered and unapproved drugs which were purchased in commercial buses”. The NAFDAC Public Relations Officer added that ‘’we have developed a modality in spearheading global efforts in the fight against fake drugs via the use of Truscan.’’ According to him, ‘’this is a hand held devise, to detect counterfeit medicines on the spot. We have also concluded plans to mobilise a monitoring group that will ensure the prohibition of sales of drugs through uncertified mediums.”
In spite of this device and several sensitization efforts, those who sell drugs without permits and customers of these unauthorized dealers and vendors still patronize them at great risks to their healths
