Rising from its 2013 Annual General Meeting (AGM), the Lagos State branch of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has passed a “vote of no confidence” on the chairman of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Committee (PIC) in the state, for what it described as inefficiency in the control and monitoring of illegal pharmaceutical outlets in the state.
In the same vein, the AGM has also recalled the antecedent of the head of the zonal office of the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) in Lagos, in undermining the activities of PIC, and hereby passed a vote of no confidence in her, as well as called for her immediate redeployment.
The resolution of the branch, which was contained in a six-point communiqué, was jointly signed by Pharm. Akintunde Obembe, chairman and Pharm. M. F. Odeyemi, Secretary.
The communiqué reads “The AGM appraised the activities of PIC in the State over a period of twenty (20) years, 1993 – 2013. And came to the conclusion that the periods: 1994 – 1996, 1999 – 2003 and 2004 – 2009 witnessed tremendous progress in the areas of inspection, monitoring and control of pharmaceutical premises”.
“However, the AGM noted with dismay that since the chairmanship of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Committee (PIC) was ceded to the State Ministry of Health in 2010, no reasonable effort has been made to monitor and control the preponderance of illegal pharmaceutical outlets in the State which are conservatively put at 200,000 outlets”.
“Consequent upon this development, the AGM hereby passed a vote of no confidence on the chairman of Pharmaceutical Inspection Committee (PIC). In the same vein, AGM recalled the antecedent of the head of the Zonal Office of the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) in Lagos in undermining the activities of PIC and hereby passed a Vote of No Confidence in her. AGM hereby called for her immediate redeployment”.
The communiqué further stated that the AGM has mandated the Executive Committee of the State branch to liaise with the national body of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria to address the above situation, as a matter of national emergency, so as to forestall further degeneration of affairs, as whatever happens in the state could have a viral effect nationally. The AGM also empowered the Executive Committee to seek other avenues in resolving this matter, including legal redress.
Expressing its disappointment at the extremely poor output of the performance of PCN in the last fifteen (15) months, the AGM has appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan, GCFR to reconstitute the Governing Council of the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, to save pharmacy practice from being further denigrated.
“AGM lamented attempts to manipulate the appointment of a Registrar and imposed a regime of increased statutory fees through illegitimate and unlawful processes and declared that the absence of a legally constituted Governing Council for about seven (7) years now encourages the exploitation of practitioners as pharmacists continue to contend with a “Sole Administrator” who is not interested in a functional inspectorate system and this is detrimental to the public health interest”.
The body therefore urged pharmacists to key into the vision of a group insurance for all members by immediately paying the enabling subscription fees before the March 31, 2013 deadline prescribed by the National Council. In the same spirit, the AGM called on members who are yet to conclude processes leading to the issuance of membership identification cards and certificates to expedite action.
Earlier on, the group had congratulated the national body on the successful hosting of the first national council meeting of the Society in the year at Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State. And the AGM hereby aligned with the twelve-point communiqué issued at the end of the council meeting.
