Tobinco CEO urges FDA to exercise strict measures on bottling of sanitizers

Dr Samuel Amo Tobbin, the Chief Executive Officer of the Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited (TPL), has called on the Food and Drugs Authority to as a matter of urgency, exercise strict measures on the bottling of hand sanitizers.

Although local manufacturers have been encouraged to produce hand sanitizers amid its shortage on the Ghanaian market following the recording of confirmed cases of COVID-19, he said, how some of them bottled the sanitizers was worrying and could serve as a threat to lives.

“A lot of them in the markets are bottled like how drinks are usually bottled, so if a hand sanitizer, especially the water-like ones are poured into these bottles, a child could mistake it for a drink and this could cause a big problem,” he said.

Speaking about the increment of prices of hand sanitizers, he said, even as the ingredients used for making it has become expensive as a result of their scarcity, manufacturers and retailers had to consider the unfortunate situation at hand and reduce the prices in order to protect the public.

He made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra.

Dr Tobbin said TPL tried to import hydroxyl chloroquine drugs from India, however, the drug which sold at $18 per kilo, was now selling at $ 1,050 dollars per kilo.

Meanwhile, the Indian government has warned companies against exporting them from India.

He believed this proved how valuable the drug was in addition to others as proposed by the World Health Organization in the fight against the pandemic, adding that, he was optimistic the world would soon find a remedy to the global canker.

The Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited earlier donated ¢251,000.00 worth of immune boosting drugs like Tobcee Vitamin C tablets, Zinvite Capsules, Glutamine Plus tablets, veronica buckets, hand sanitizers, nose masks, and disposable gloves to the Ministry of Health in the fight against COVID-19.

Dr Tobbin said the gesture was to give back to society what the company had gained from them.

“The Tobinco Group has reached this state due to the contribution of the public. So when the same people are encountering a crisis, it is necessary to give back to them,” he said.

The company, he said, would also distribute similar products to traditional rulers at remote areas and district capitals, he said.

He said with the exception of encouraging people to practice personal hygiene, COVID-19 has caused a great damage to every sector of the economy.