FDA, police nab Tramadol peddlers in Ashaiman

The Food and Drugs Authority in collaboration with the Ghana Police Service and other stakeholders have arrested 12 fake drug peddlers at the Ashaiman market and lorry station.

The products, which included assorted drugs such as Tramadol, herbal preparation, aphrodisiac and others, were seized by the team.

The peddlers were selling without registration and operating without license from the Pharmaceutical Council.

Mr Vigil Pra-Ashun, the Head, Drug Market Surveillance Department, FDA said the exercise was part of a five-day Training Workshop On ‘Pharmaceutical Crime Investigations and Intelligence”.

The programme was organised for members of the security agencies, the Judiciary, the media and the FDA with support from UKaid, and Prointel Consults.

He said the offenders would be handed over to the police for the necessary action to be taken after taking inventory of the product seized and found out that they were guilty of breaching the law.

Mr Pra-Ashun said the exercise was to stop the menace of selling unapproved medicines which posed a serious risk to the health of the public, stating that Tramadol had become a worrying trend to the Authority because of the abuse by the youth and the wrong milligrams sold to the public.

According to him, Tramadol was a painkiller, which the FDA had approved the 50 and 100 milligrams, but the drug peddlers were selling the 200 milligrams on the market which was dangerous to all and sundry

He said the Authority had organized similar exercises at Madina, Circle and the Regions and would continue with the exercise until all fake drug peddlers were arrested and urged the public to divulge any information about their activities to the Authority for action.

He said FDA had organized an educational drive to sensitize the peddlers about the dangers of fake drugs and urged them to desist from such activities to be free from an arrest.