| Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu |
Members of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria in Ondo State on Tuesday locked up pharmaceutical shops in Akure, capital of the state, to protest President Muhammadu Buhari’s delay in assenting to the 2017 Pharmacy Bill.
According to a statement issued by the Ondo State Secretary of ACPN, Mr Olufemi Obateru, members of the association across the country had agreed on the action to highlight their grievances.
“We believe that coming together as a group, we will be able to compel President Buhari to listen to us. It is not an individual thing, but a collective action that is meant for the benefit of the entire country.
“We have been on this matter since 2017 when the bill was passed by the National Assembly. Here we are again appealing to the President to listen to us,” Obateru said.
He added that the law enforcement agencies would take care of the chaotic drug distribution crisis currently experienced in the country.
“It is sad that in Nigeria, there is an open market where drugs are directly sold to consumers. Those people that are involved in this illicit business are not certified by the relevant authorities and they do not know anything about drugs. We want this to stop,” he said.
Obateru said that if the President failed to sign the bill into law, despite the protests and demands from pharmacists nationwide, the national executive of the association would decide on the next step to take.