IDEA Zone ACPN Decries Illegal Drug Trade, Weak Distribution, Threat to Public Health

– Unveils Acquired Landed Property, Elects New Officers at AGM

Community pharmacists under the umbrella of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN), IDEA Zone, have raised alarm over the rising illegal drug trade and the absence of an organised medicines distribution system, warning that the trend poses a grave danger to public health and the future of pharmacy practice.

The concerns were expressed during the zone’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held at the HOB and HOC Event Centre, Shasha, Lagos, where practitioners reviewed the state of the profession and charted strategies for the coming year.

Chairman of ACPN Lagos State, Pharm. Tolulope Ajayi, who was the guest of honour at the event, described poor drug distribution as the greatest threat to healthcare delivery in Nigeria. He noted that medicines are not ordinary commodities but potent products that must remain strictly in the hands of trained professionals.

According to him, the infiltration of charlatans into the drug supply chain has continued to endanger lives and weaken confidence in the health system. He urged government at all levels to sanitise the distribution architecture and strengthen regulatory agencies to ensure that only licensed pharmacists handle and dispense medicines.

Ajayi commended IDEA Zone for its vibrancy and recent acquisition of a parcel of land, describing it as evidence of visionary leadership and accountability. He, however, cautioned that such projects should not become a burden but must be utilised to advance professional development and generate sustainable revenue for the zone.

He further disclosed that the state executive was considering administrative restructuring in line with local government and LCDA arrangements to bring leadership and regulation closer to the grassroots.

In her remarks, Zonal Coordinator of IDEA Zone, Pharm. Chinwe Emenike, said the large population and wide geographical spread of the zone had made it attractive to illegal operators who hide in obscure locations to sell prescription medicines.

She explained that the zone had created territorial leadership structures to monitor neighbourhoods and report unethical practices, adding that members must remain vigilant to protect the integrity of the profession.

Emenike appealed to Nigerians to patronise only registered pharmacies, stressing that buying medicines from roadside vendors and unlicensed outlets could lead to treatment failure and avoidable deaths.

Elder statesman, Pharm. Deji Osinoiki, called for the immediate reconstitution of a zonal monitoring team to check the proliferation of illegal premises. He said the responsibility of defending pharmacy practice rests on every member through prompt reporting of intruders.

Former Lagos ACPN officer, Pharm. Jonah Okotie, warned that artificial intelligence and online platforms were beginning to encourage self-medication, urging pharmacists to establish a hub for self-monitoring and professional assessment to remain relevant.

Also speaking, Pharm. Kola Sumonu lamented the increasing menace of drug hawking in Agege, Abule-Egba, and other parts of the state, where potent medicines are sold under the sun like ordinary goods. He urged ACPN to extend enforcement efforts beyond illegal premises to street vendors.

Veteran practitioner and former PSN President, Pharm. Anthony Akhimien, said pharmacy had never faced this level of threat in over three decades. He alleged that some government policies were indirectly empowering quacks, warning that failure to rescue the profession now would result in future regret. He emphasised that the pharmacy emblem remains the only trusted symbol guiding the public to safe medicines.

A former coordinator of the zone, Pharm. Mfon Nsese, decried a situation where some wholesalers retail directly to patients at cut-throat prices, turning community pharmacies into mere counselling centres. She advocated routine inspections and stronger grassroots engagement.

Stakeholders at the meeting, including Pharm. Isaac Olufunminiyi, financial secretary, Lagos ACPN, and Pharm. Imade Roy-Ekekwe, publicity secretary, Lagos ACPN, advised that the association should intensify collaboration with regulatory bodies, strengthen internal discipline, and deepen respect for elders whose experience remains critical to the survival of the profession.

However, the high point of the programme was the re-election of the new executive members of the zone for the next one year.