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Lagos Police parade man with 21 parcels of illicit drugs 

By Eniola Daniel (Lagos) and Michael Egbejule, (Benin City)
13 August 2022   |   4:08 am
Operatives of the Lagos State Police Command, yesterday, paraded a drug peddler arrested with 21 parcels of illicit drugs.

• Medications Promoted On Social Media Contributing To Blindness — Expert
Operatives of the Lagos State Police Command, yesterday, paraded a drug peddler arrested with 21 parcels of illicit drugs.
   
The drugs were being conveyed and concealed in the bonnet of a Sienna Bus with Registration Number BEN 883 LW driven by a 32-year-old man, Kalu Orji, of Angle 90, Auchi, Edo State.
 
According to the Police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, the the suspect was nabbed by a team of vigilant policemen attached to Area G Command, Ogba, Lagos during a stop-and-search on Friday, August 5, 2022 at Aguda, near Excellence Hotel, Ogba, Lagos State.
 
Hundeyin said the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CP Abiodun Alabi, has directed that the suspect and exhibit be transferred to the Command’s headquarters for further investigation.

He equally reassured the public of adequate security of lives and property as well as a sustainable fight against the menace of drug misuse and abuse in Lagos State.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the National Eye Health Committee of the Federal Ministry of Health, Prof. Afekhide Omoti, yesterday, expressed worry over the growing number of social media advertisements of drugs and other chemicals.

He advised Nigerians not to patronise such products, but rather see their doctors for the correct diagnosis and treatment.

He disclosed that sponsors of such drugs on social media make all sort of claims that these drugs and chemical substances cure all eye diseases.

Omoti, a Consultant Ophthalmologist with the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), said these social media posts are fraudulent.

He said: “ It is not true that there is any single drug capable of curing all eye diseases or able to restore sight in all types of visual impairment. Many eye diseases are incurable and can only be controlled.

“For glaucoma, which is the leading cause of irreversible blindness, early detection is required to prevent blindness, if properly managed by a qualified optician. Any visual loss that occurs from glaucoma cannot be recovered by any known treatment. Currently available treatment modalities only serve to arrest further progression and not to cure the disease.”

The medical expert said that drugs, which are advertised on social media platforms and are spilling into print and electronic media, would not only cause glaucoma patients not to take their drugs as prescribed by their doctors, but could also result in the disease gradually progressing to blindness.

He said: “Many of these drugs have not even passed through the regulatory authorities in Nigeria and not certified by National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC). The safety of such drugs cannot be guaranteed even if the advertisements claim that they are natural products.

“The persons behind these social media posts prey on the ignorance of the public and the desperation of patients suffering from incurable eye diseases. “

He tasked Nigerians not to patronise such products but to rather see their qualified medical practitioners for the correct diagnosis and treatment.

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