By Steve Oni, Ilorin

 Nigeria currently imports 70% of its pharmaceutical needs and only exports  30%, says the National President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) , Alhaji Ahmed Yakassai, 
Yakassai said that the unacceptable level of importation of pharmaceutical products into the country could be injurious to Nigerians' health

 Speaking at a town hall meeting with members of the association in Ilorin, Kwara state capital Tuesday, the PSN National President lamented that some African countries and other nations had bombarded Nigeria with imported drugs, adding that, "any one can put anything together anywhere and then kill people anyhow. That's part of the security implication".

 He also lamented that two local pharmaceutical companies, Evans and Swipha, had either been sold or taken over by banks, saying that despite available human resources in the country, the industry was bedevilled with challenges in infrastructure, high tax, lack of control mechanism, chaotic drug distribution, substandard/drug abuse, lack of government support, inadequate funding, and quackery among others.

 The PSN national president, who said that the association was owed a total sum of N4 billion between the period of administrations of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and president Muhammadu Buhari for drugs purchased, added that the present Buhari administration recently paid N2 billion out of the debt.

 He said various governments preferred to buy on credit from Nigeria's drug manufacturers and pay cash to manufacturers in India and other countries.

 Yakassai, who called for a state of emergency on drug abuse, described drug distribution in the country as chaotic, adding that many people see pharmaceutical industry as an easy way to make money.

 He noted that there were growing unconventional ways of drug abuse among Nigerians of all sexes and ages in many parts of the country, lamenting that councils for the control agencies were not formed to ensure effective control.

 "I don't know how they got to know those unconventional ways of drug abuse. Tramadol plus cough syrup to methylated spirit and soft drinks. Inhaling pit latrine, gutters. It's the quacks behind this unprofessional conduct. Patent medicine dealers are no pharmacists, though there are bad elements in every profession and in every society. That's more the reason corruption should be fought holistically. It affects all sectors. And we can't call for ban of the abused drugs. We can only control it, while importers of illicit and substandard drugs should attract life sentence because they cause death of a lot of people", he said.

 He also said that the federal government was yet to fulfill its promise to close markets where illicit and substandard drugs are sold in the country, and replaced with coordinated wholesale markets where the police, NAFDAC, and other control agencies would be located to do random checks on the operators.

 He expressed the hope that the pharmaceutical industry would be encouraged when Dangote petrochemical industry starts operations, saying that active pharmaceutical ingredients would be derived to boost local pharmaceutical production and exportation.