The Lagos State Government has closed 34 medicine outlets in the state due to regulatory violations, including the sale of outdated medications.

According to a statement released on Friday, the affected businesses are located in the Shomolu, Bariga, Gbagada, and Ifako sections of the Shomolu and Kosofe Local Government Areas, as well as Bale and Savage streets in the state’s Orile Iganmu Local Council Development Area.

Prof. Akin Abayomi, the Commissioner for Health, was quoted as saying this after reviewing the report of the Lagos State Taskforce on Counterfeit, Fake Drugs, and Unwholesome Processed Food’s recent monitoring, inspection, and enforcement exercises, that the affected outlets were closed for violating regulations governing the sale of medicines in the state.

He said, “The sealing of the affected medicine outlets was in accordance with the provisions of Section C34 of the Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods Miscellaneous Provision Act of 1999.”

The affected businesses were also sealed for offenses such as “inappropriate drug storage conditions,” “unskilled persons handling and dispensing drugs,” “sale of drugs by illegal shop owners,” “stocking of expired drugs,” and “sale in market places,” according to Abayomi.

Abayomi said patent medicine vendors are only allowed to offer drug items in their original and approved pack size as created by the manufacturing companies while stressing that the selling of medicines is only allowed in registered and regulated outlets.

He went on to say that the law forbids patent medicine merchants and licensed pharmaceutical establishments from operating outside of their competence.

According to him, the current operation was a follow-up to the task force’s restructured enforcement action to sanitize Lagos State’s narcotics distribution network.

He said, “The Task Force enforcement activities in Shomolu and Bariga LGA was a follow up to previous enforcement exercise conducted in the areas in October which are aimed at compliance

“The revisit revealed a significant success in the war against fake drugs and illegal drug shops in Lagos as 16 shops earlier sealed were met evacuated and are no longer involved in the illegal sale of drugs.

“The November enforcement exercise at Savage and Bale streets in Orile-Iganmu LCDA was to prevent clustering of drug outlets which are a haven for fake drugs. It is worthy to mention that 13 out of 14 outlets visited were sealed, one of the sealed premises was found to be stocking expired drugs which are hazardous to the health of the State Citizenry.”