Monrovia – Carrying on a robust operation in curtailing illicit drugs in the country, officers of the Liberian Drugs Enforcement Agency (LDEA) have arrested a huge quantity of expired pharmaceutical drugs on Monday following a tip-off.
The expired drugs, according to the Liberian Drugs Enforcement Agency, were discovered and arrested in an unfinished building in the Johnsonville Community outside Monrovia.
The number of drugs arrested was 75 cartons of several types of expired and counterfeit drugs such as; Vermox, HIV test kit, Amodiaquine, Septrin, Gentamycin, paracetamol, and sterilized water.
“We are warning people to stop encouraging the sale of drugs on the streets as most of these drugs are usually sold by those carrying them in buckets and backpacks in the communities and markets places,” said Anthony Souh, Director General of the LDEA.
Although the value of the expired drugs is unknown, the LDEA boss said they are working with the Liberian Medical Health Regulatory Authority (LMHRA) and will turn over the expired drugs currently in their possession.
“Those who are involved in this unwholesome act should deist from such. This poses a serious risk to the health of ordinary Liberians. Anyone caught will face the full weight of the law when arrested.
The arrest made by the LDEA comes in a wake of the Joint Committee of Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Parliament meeting in the country to discuss on Health, Social Welfare, Trade, and Customs.
During the opening of the meeting, the Chairperson of ECOWAS, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, said counterfeit drugs continue to pose a serious risk to public health in the sub-region.
The President asserted that counterfeit drugs, including medical products, continue to harm patients and undermine the efforts of governments in the region to provide better health services to their citizens.
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