By Charles Igwe
Anambra North Senator, Dr. Tony Nwoye, has strongly criticized the prolonged closure of the Ogbo Ogwu Market in Onitsha, describing the situation as a dangerous abuse of regulatory powers by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
The shutdown, which began in February 2025 after a large-scale NAFDAC operation aimed at tackling counterfeit drugs, has left over 5,000 shops sealed and thousands of traders unable to earn a living. Nwoye, who visited the market alongside former Anambra Governor and Labour Party leader Peter Obi, decried the action as both excessive and indiscriminate.
In a strongly worded statement, the senator acknowledged the need to rid the market of fake pharmaceuticals but questioned the decision to punish an entire commercial ecosystem. “This has gone beyond regulation—it is now mass victimization,” he said. “Even traders dealing in non-related goods like paints and plumbing accessories have been locked out.”
Nwoye took particular issue with the monetary demands imposed on the traders, citing NAFDAC’s initial request for ₦500,000 per shop as a condition for reopening, which was later increased to ₦700,000. He labelled the fees as exploitative and legally questionable, arguing that such measures deepen hardship rather than promote compliance.
“More than a thousand traders have paid under pressure, while thousands more cannot afford it. This is economic injustice masquerading as enforcement,” he noted.
The senator did not mince words in his call for both the Federal Government and the Anambra State Government to act swiftly. He urged Governor Chukwuma Soludo to intervene decisively and reverse what he termed a grave injustice against one of West Africa’s most prominent drug markets.
Nwoye was clear that culpable individuals involved in the sale of counterfeit drugs should be prosecuted, but insisted that blanket punishment without due process was unconstitutional. He also demanded a full refund of all monies collected from traders not implicated in any wrongdoing.
“Ogbo Ogwu Market must not be made a scapegoat,” he said. “I will continue to use every legislative and legal avenue available to ensure justice for the traders. No regulatory body has the right to undermine people’s livelihoods this way.”
Calling for more measured and lawful approaches to regulation, Senator Nwoye stressed that the rights of law-abiding citizens must remain protected even in the fight against criminality. “Enforcement without fairness is nothing but oppression,” he concluded.
