Connect with us

News

NAFDAC Ban On Sachet Alcoholic Drinks: Labour Unions Protest in Ogun, Allege Threat To Local Industries

Published

on

Following the ban on sachet alcoholic drinks and been enforced by National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), in a united stance, the Trade Union Congress  and the Nigeria Labour Congress have strongly opposed the development branding it as an anti-people policy designed to undermine local manufacturing companies.

 The ban encompasses the production, distribution, and sales of alcoholic beverages in sachets, PET, and glass bottles of 200ml and below. Distillers and labour unions across the nation have voiced their discontent through repeated protests following the shutdown of non-compliant production facilities.

Leading a recent protest in Abeokuta, TUC Chairman Akeem Lasisi and NLC Chairman Hammed Ademola Benco called for the suspension of NAFDAC’s Director General, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, accusing her of collaborating with multinational companies to jeopardize local alcohol production businesses.

During the protest at the Ogun State House of Assembly, union members, including the Food Beverages and Tobacco Senior Staff Association (FOBTOB) and the National Union of Food Beverages and Tobacco Employees (NUFBE), wielded placards with inscriptions such as “Sachet alcohol is not Nigeria’s problem” and “NAFDAC don’t take away our work.”

Addressing the Assembly Speaker Hon. Oludaisi Elemide, Lasisi  lamented that the ban could result in the loss of over 500,000 jobs and an investment of over N800 billion in the industry.

“We believe this policy is anti-people. Drinking alcohol is a choice, and a significant portion of sales in this industry comes from sachet alcohol. 

This ban will seriously impact Nigerians, especially workers,” stated Lasisi.

The NLC chairman urged State Houses of Assembly to intervene and urged NAFDAC to reconsider the ban to protect the manufacturing sector. In response, the Speaker promised to engage with the Federal government to reconsider the ban.

Following the Assembly protest, the demonstrators proceeded to the palace of the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, where representatives of the labor unions engaged in closed-door discussions with the monarch.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

News

Ogun Police Launches Manhunt for APC Councillor Killers

Published

on

By

Police say they have launched a manhunt for the killers of an APC councillorship candidate, in the Ogun state November 16 local government poll.
The candidate, Adeyemi Adeleke was shot dead on Saturday afternoon at Jide Jones axis of Oke Ilewo, Abeokuta, the state capital.
His assassins shot him at a close range and smashed his head to ensure he was dead before fleeing the scene.
Spokesperson of the state police command, Omolola Odutola said policemen have been deployed to track down the assasins.
Odutola in a telephone conversation said the killers are suspected cultists and were armed with a pump action rifle and a pistol in an unmarked Toyota corrola sport car.
She said police immediately visited the scene after the incident, took photographs, while the family of the late candidate requested to take his body away without a post mortem examination.
The police image maker said police investigations of the incident was underway to arrest the fleeing killers of the candidate.

Continue Reading

News

Group Raises Awareness on Gender Violence

Published

on

By

The centre for community development, family and health initiative has alerted of the rising reported cases of sexual and gender based violence in Ogun state.
The centre chief executive director, Fidelis Olumide Igbodipe issued the alert in Ijebu Ode during the training organized by the centre for media practitioners on sexual and gender based violence over the weekend.
He explained that the training aimed at raising awareness, promote dialogue and advocacy for policy change to tackle sexual and geder based violence (SGBV) in the state.
Igbodipe said the focus of the training was how the media could assist in continuous advocacy, communtiy mobilization and engagement on the issue.
He called for a change in the perception about sexual and reproductive health rights of the people and zero tolerance for SGBV.

Continue Reading

News

NDLEA Arrests Drug Kingpin in Abeokuta

Published

on

By

A suspected drug kingpin, Ajiboye Damilare has been arrested by National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital.
The suspect, according to the anti-narcotic agency, has been on its wanted list for over a year.
He was arrested on Wednesday, last week, in a bank in the city.
Spokesman of the agency, Femi Babafemi, on Sunday said the suspect had been evading arrest since NDLEA operatives raided his warehouse, at Akala Street, Mushin in Lagos on September 4, 2023.
According to Babafemi, a total of one thousand and 101 kilogram of Ghana loud was recovered from the warehouse.
Since then, Babafemi said the directorate of assets and financial investigation of NDLEA which had been tracking him, linked him with 20 bank accounts and blocked them.

Continue Reading

Trending