NEWS ANALYSIS: The ban on ‘sachet alcohol’ — by Chris Adetayo
I just watched the DG of NAFDAC, Prof Moji Adeyeye, give a spirited defence of her Agency’s clampdown on production and sale of alcohol in sachet packages. I was shocked to realise that the battle has been going on for nearly a decade.
It’s a shame that, in a bid to make money at any cost, we do not care how we do so. What defence can there really be for selling alcohol in sachets? That it makes it affordable? Or that several other product types (milk, tea, ketchup etc) are also sold in sachets?
No defence justifies permitting the production and sale of alcohol in sachets, given the high risk of abuse that it engenders and the easy accessibility to children and other vulnerable groups that it facilitates.
Where NAFDAC should be carpeted is for issuing approvals for the production of these packages in the first place. It was wrong. Should never have happened. The good thing is that it gave 6 years moratorium to the respective manufacturers to switch their packaging. That’s more than enough time for anyone serious about its business.
I hope that NAFDAC sees it through. I hope the Federal Government supports it to the hilt on this matter. If all the alcohol producing companies will, because of the ban, pack up shop and close down, so be it!
For once, let’s prioritise our Public Health over money-making, please!
