A former National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) staff member, Olatunde Isaac, has asked President Bola Tinubu to sack the agency’s Director-General, Prof Moji Adeyeye and appoint him as her replacement.
The health law researcher promised to cut the circulation of counterfeit and substandard medicines by 60 per cent within his first six months in office.
Isaac, who said he had worked with NAFDAC for nearly a decade, made the appeal in a Thursday post on X, where he urged the President to give him the mandate and institutional backing to lead the agency.
According to the CEO of Bioclinix Medical Diagnostic Centre, his years at NAFDAC have been devoted to combating counterfeit and substandard medicines as well as unsafe food products.
He said his contribution to the fight against fake food and drugs had earned him the NAFDAC Director-General’s Merit Award.
Isaac said his appeal was not based on a request for favour, but on his experience, competence and record of commitment to the national interest.
“Mr. President, I am not asking for a favour. I am offering competence, experience and a proven commitment to the national interest,” he said.
He specifically urged Tinubu to appoint him as NAFDAC Director-General, promising to introduce a more aggressive approach to tackling the circulation of fake medicines and unsafe foods.
“Make me the Director-General of NAFDAC, give me the mandate and the institutional backing, and I will take the fight against counterfeit medicines and unsafe foods to an entirely different level,” Isaac said.
He further pledged that his immediate target would be to achieve a minimum 60 per cent reduction in the circulation of counterfeit and substandard medicines and unsafe regulated products within his first six months in office.
He said the broader objective would be to reduce the menace to its “barest minimum” within one year.
Isaac argued that Nigeria had no shortage of professionals capable of delivering results, stressing that effective leadership sometimes required the willingness to place qualified individuals in positions where they could make the greatest impact.
“Nigeria does not lack capable professionals. Sometimes, what is needed is simply the courage to put the right person in the right place,” he said.
He also appealed for the necessary institutional support to enable him deliver on the proposed targets.
“Give me the mandate. Give me the tools. I will deliver,” Isaac added.
He said Nigeria deserved a stronger and more effective campaign against counterfeit medicines and unsafe food products, using the hashtags #NAFDAC, #EndFakeDrugs and #ConsumerSafety.
