Traders at Ekumi Plaza in Ariaria International Market, Aba, who deal in hair and beauty accessories, are pleading with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to reopen their shops.
The traders, who do not deal in drugs or pharmaceutical products, have been affected by the closure of many sections of the market due to the discovery of fake, unregistered, and re-dated drugs in some shops.
Chibuike Johnson Eze, Chairman of the Beauty and Hair Accessories section, expressed the traders’ frustration, stating that about 1,000 shops have remained closed, leaving traders in economic hardship.
“We have been at home for two weeks, doing nothing for a crime we know nothing about,” he lamented.
The traders are appealing to Governor Alex Otti to intervene and facilitate the reopening of their shops, emphasizing that no implicating materials like fake drugs were found in their shops during the NAFDAC search.
They believe that those selling fake and expired drugs should be punished, not innocent traders doing genuine businesses.