The Nationwide Company for Meals and Drug Administration and Management (NAFDAC) has distanced itself from a viral video exhibiting some people destroying sachet water packs at factories and on buses.
In a press release posted on X on Sunday, NAFDAC clarified that the people weren’t its officers and that it had nothing to do with their actions.
“Stopping automobiles to destroy merchandise is unprofessional and doesn’t align with any NAFDAC Commonplace Working Process,” the company added.
NAFDAC mentioned in response to a press release earlier made by the Lagos State Ministry of the Surroundings and Water Assets commissioner, Tokunbo Wahab, on X (previously Twitter), linking the people within the video to the company.
The commissioner had alleged that the people have been NAFDAC enforcement officers focusing on non-compliant sachet water.
However the company has denied any involvement.
Viral video
The clarification got here amid public concern and confusion over the people’ identities and the motive behind the enforcement actions.
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Within the video, an unknown man makes use of a brief iron rod to destroy baggage of sachet water on a truck. The video shared by an X person, @Pep.Boxx, with the caption, “Luggage of sachet water destroyed in Lagos State,” led to hypothesis about whether or not the Lagos State Authorities had carried out new rules banning sachet water.
The person additionally linked the video to the state authorities’s ban on single-use plastics and Styrofoam, which shall be efficient by January 2025, whereas declaring that the state had claimed the ban wouldn’t apply to sachet water or PET bottles.
“Luggage of sachet water destroyed in Lagos state. Recall that the Lagos State Authorities had clarified again in October that the ban on single-use plastics and Styrofoam, which is ready to take impact from January 2025, is not going to embrace sachet water and PET bottles, the person wrote.
Lagos govt, NAFDAC reply
Addressing the hypothesis, Mr Wahab, the Lagos State Commissioner for Surroundings and Water Assets, disassociated the state authorities from the incident and claimed his investigation had revealed that the individuals within the video have been NAFDAC officers.
“I want to categorically state that these people aren’t enforcement officers from any Lagos State Authorities company or the Lagos State Ministry of the Surroundings and Water Assets.
“Upon investigation, it was confirmed that the people in query are enforcement officers from the Nationwide Company for Meals and Drug Administration and Management (NAFDAC).
“Their actions are a part of an enforcement train focusing on sachet water that doesn’t adjust to NAFDAC rules and within the curiosity of public well being and security,” Mr Wahab mentioned.
NAFDAC, in response, denied Mr Wahab’s declare, stating that the people’ actions have been inconsistent with its technique of operation.
“The movies circulating of people participating in enforcement actions are NOT NAFDAC officers or a part of our Investigation & Enforcement group,” the company mentioned.
Lagos plastic ban
Mr Wahab maintained that the Lagos State Authorities has not banned sachet water, nor does it intend to.
He mentioned the state authorities is as an alternative targeted on sustainable plastic waste administration by means of progressive measures such because the Prolonged Producer Duty (EPR) initiative.
“Our precedence is addressing plastic waste by means of sustainable, inclusive methods. Sachet water stays a vital product, and we’re working to control its environmental influence whereas supporting financial actions,” he mentioned.
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With each NAFDAC and the Lagos State Authorities condemning the actions and emphasising their adherence to skilled and sustainable practices, the general public is left questioning who the culprits could possibly be. It highlights the vulnerability of Nigerians to prison tendencies of state and non-state actors.
Plastic administration plan
In accordance with the commissioner, the Lagos State Authorities is establishing a Plastic Waste Administration Fund in partnership with Producer Duty Organisations (PROs) and main importers to bolster plastic waste administration.
He additionally mentioned the fund shall be financed by contributions from the producers and can sort out the rising plastic waste challenges within the State.
The commissioner urged Lagos residents to ignore misinformation a few sachet water ban, noting the state authorities’s dedication to interact stakeholders in sustainable options.
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