We’ll appeal My Pikin judgement –NAFDAC

[Mirror]

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, said it would file a cross-appeal against the judgement of a Federal High Court in Lagos on My Pikin case.

The court had sentenced the producers of the baby teething mixture to seven years imprisonment. The two convicts, Adeyemo Abiodun and Egbele Austine Eromosele, who were senior workers of Barewa Pharmaceuticals Limited (which produced My Pikin) were jailed on May 17 by Justice Okechukwu Okeke, now retired, for offences of conspiracy to sell and sale of the killer drug.

NAFDAC, however, said there was overwhelming evidence which Okeke ought to have used to impose more serious punitive measures on the convicts which the judge overlooked. Consequently, the agency said it would seek redress by filing a crossappeal.

NAFDAC made this disclosure in its counter-affidavit to a bail application filed by the convicts, who are seeking bail pending appeal on health grounds.

In their bail application, the convicts had prayed the court to grant them freedom to enable them to take care of themselves.

The counter-affidavit was deposed to by a NAFDAC official, Adumen Jombo Washington, who averred that there were adequate medical facilities and qualified personnel in the prison that could conveniently take care of the convicts' health.

He added that the Prison Service also had internal arrangement whereby it could partner with the families of inmates to refer them to more equipped government or private hospitals.

NAFDAC, therefore, prayed the court to reject the convicts' bail application on the grounds that there was no justifiable basis for it. The matter, which is before Justice Mohammed Idris of a Federal High Court in Lagos, is yet to be fixed for hearing.

National Mirror