Kebbi State office of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration-NAFDAC is to prosecute companies that refused to renew their registeration with the agency.
The State Coordinator of the agency, Alhaji Muyideen Suleiman made this known at a five-day stakeholders meeting holding in Birnin Kebbi.
He said, registration proved that a product is genuine and safe for consumption.
According to him, companies that are running away from registration, knew that, either what they are producing is harmful or the environment where the product is being manufacturerd can posed danger.
“On the renewal of licences, if you are on leasing licence, it takes two years from the date of issuance to renew and if you are on full licence it takes five years to renew”.
The Coordinator pointed out that, failure to renew the licence indicated that, the company had either gone below standard of which it was registered or its doing something else outside what registeration was meant for, the company production facilities have deteriorated or facility may be giving out unsafe and efficacious product.
Alhaji Suleiman said, what prompt the stakeholders meeting was that, on assumption of duty as the State Coordinator, was a visitation to seventeen water packaging factories and none has complied with the agency rules and regulations in one of the local government area.
He said, the meeting would enable the agency to interact with each and every stakeholder, telling them what is right and what is wrong after which weeks ultimatum will be given to them to go and meet up with standard before the enforcement commenced.
The Coordinator revealed that, from the statistics on ground, there was more than two hundred registered water packaging companies and over five hundred bakeries.
He disclosed that, he visited sixteen water packaging companies and twelve backries in two local government areas but what he saw was disheartening and disappointing.
Abdullahi Tukur