The Association of Community Pharmacists has petitioned President Bola Tinubu regarding a recent circular from Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Tunji Alausa.
The circular directs Chief Medical Directors and Medical Directors of Federal government-owned tertiary health institutions to use locally-made syringes and needles.
In their letter titled ‘A Need for a Presidential Redress of the Gaffe by Dr. Tunji’, the ACPN criticized the circular, calling it a misnomer in many aspects.
The letter, jointly signed by their National Chairman, Prince Wale Oladigbolu and National Secretary, Pharm. Omokhafe Ashore, argued that the circular does not align with the convention and protocol of the civil service in Nigeria.
They also noted that it was inappropriate for a Minister to sign such a circular instead of a designated civil servant.
The letter reads partly, “The desperation and a seeming ulterior motive by the Minister of State to get involved procedurally in what should have been the exclusive preserve of bureaucrats like the Permanent Secretary or other technocrats like the relevant Directors have led to avoidable errors.
“In the past few weeks, some notable leaders in healthcare and representatives of some of the various healthcare professional bodies cautioned the Hon. Minister on the need to exercise caution before banning the importation of medical consumables and devices as well as drugs in Nigeria.
“When Dr. Tunji Alausa visited Afrimedical Manufacturing and Supplies Ltd. syringe factory in Ota, Ogun State about mid-March, 2024 (the factory is purportedly owned by a major Presidential aspirant in the 2023 general elections) and began to mouth the need to ban the import of syringes in Nigeria, the cognoscenti of opinion was that the imperative demanded a requisite need assessment of needles and syringes in Nigeria against a scientific evaluation of the capacity utilization and installed capacity of the existing three factories which manufacture syringes in Nigeria.
“The ACPN as the technical group of the PSN, which is the natural habitat of the largest assemblage of producers and marketers of drugs, consumables, chemicals, medical devices and other health consumables remains a strong advocate of local manufacturing.
“The ethos and tenets of commerce suggest that Competitiveness brings out the best in terms of quality and pricing index.
“The advantage of consumers in all global assessments. Even if we choose to jeopardize WTO treaties to which we are signatories because of national interest must be guided by recent experiences in the commodity segment markets.”
The Federal Government had three days ago banned the use of foreign-made syringes and needles in Nigeria’s tertiary hospitals.
This move aims to boost domestic production and protect Nigeria’s manufacturing sector from foreign goods.
In a directive issued to all Chief Medical Directors and Medical Directors of Federal tertiary hospitals, they are now mandated to procure needles and syringes only from National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control-approved local manufacturers.
This directive, revealed in a circular signed by Minister of State for Health, Dr. Tunji Alausa, underscores the government’s commitment to supporting local pharmaceutical industries and reducing the prevalence of substandard medical products in the market.
