NAFDAC detains popular Kaduna herbal manufacturer due to an expired license
Alhaji Salisu Sani, a well-known manufacturer of Baban Aisha herbal medicines, was detained on Monday, according to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, for operating with an expired license and conducting an illegal promotion of the business’s goods in Kaduna.
To stop the sporadic use of illegal drugs, the agency revealed that it has started a crackdown on illegal herbal manufacturers and vendors.
NAFDAC Director-General Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye spoke to journalists in Abuja and reaffirmed that the agency’s responsibility is to control the production, distribution, advertising, and use of drugs, foods, and chemicals to prevent Nigerians from suffering organ damage, strokes, or sudden death.
Alhaji Salisu Sani, the person in charge of producing the herbal medicine Baban Aisha, has been detained. Once more, we are unable to separate ourselves from these products. Due to our knowledge, we might decide not to use them. What will happen to other Nigerians who utilize them? She spoke.
Adeyeye stated that after an investigation, NAFDAC had concerns about the safety of Sacra Herbs oral liquid, also known as Baban Aisha, which was the event that resulted in Sani’s arrest.
The Kaduna manufacturer was found to have continued producing unapproved herbal mixtures long after his license had expired, according to further investigation, the Professor of Pharmaceutics noted.
The agency received a request for the registration of Sacra Herbs oral liquid from Sacra Multi-Links Ltd, Layin Alhaji Hamza Mai Bread, Tafa Kagarko LGA in Kaduna State, the spokesperson claimed. In accordance with regulatory procedures, we approved the listing of Sacra Herbs’ oral liquid for the treatment of pile and related pains under NAFDAC registration number A7-2590L. On September 6, 2018, the product’s registration notification was given; it is valid through September 12, 2019.
“The company submitted a request for license renewal on August 12, 2020. But after the company’s production facility was subjected to a regulatory audit, compliance orders were issued to them for non-conformities found there that they were expected to address. However, the company did not address the discovered flaws, so the product registration license was not renewed.
NAFDAC went on to say that “Sacra herb,” whose license expired in 2019, was initially approved for the management of pile and associated pains, but that Sacra Multi Links went above and beyond the scope of the prescription by additionally adding “for treatment of waist pains, typhoid, ulcer, pile and toilet infection to the Baban Aisha product.”
The agency’s investigation and enforcement team conducted surveillance after receiving complaints about the company’s unethical practices on social media, and the result was the sealing of the factory and the arrest of two employees.
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Salisu Sani, the owner of Sacra Multi Links, arrived at our Kaduna office the following day. The following herbal drugs were removed from his car after it was searched: Sacra Herbs oral liquid, along with Baban Aisha manpower & delay (an aphrodisiac), and two other unregistered herbal preparations. The NAFDAC laboratory received all the products discovered with the managing director and others discovered in his business for analysis.
“We have started a nationwide campaign to remove any Sacra Herbs from circulation. In order to hold offenders accountable and reduce drug use, we have also stepped up our crackdown on all illegal producers and distributors of herbal preparations and other unregistered preparations.
“I would like to appeal to everyone to stop using this hazardous herbal preparation, especially the vulnerable group. I want to reassure Nigerians that NAFDAC is making every effort to make sure that our population only receives the safest medications and wholesome, high-quality food,” she said.
