The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has confirmed that Thursday’s violent attack on its officers at the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex was a premeditated attempt to assassinate senior enforcement officials during a raid on counterfeit and substandard products.
According to the agency, the enforcement operation, led by the Director of Investigation and Enforcement, Dr. Martins Iluyomade, was based on credible intelligence about the sale and distribution of fake and unwholesome goods within the market.
What began as a routine exercise reportedly turned chaotic when armed hoodlums stormed the scene, demanding to identify the Task Force chairman. In the process, about ten operational vehicles belonging to NAFDAC and other security agencies, valued at over ₦25 million, were vandalised.
Dr. Iluyomade, who also serves as Chairman of the Federal Task Force on Counterfeit and Fake Drugs, alleged that the attack was coordinated from within the market.
> “From reliable intelligence, this was planned. The market’s Chief Security Officer, who was accompanying us, gave an instruction on their internal platform ordering all cluster leaders to act immediately. That was the signal for the lockdown and assault,” he said.
Speaking on behalf of the Director General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, Iluyomade told journalists in Lagos that the officers had already confiscated several cartons of fake, banned, and unwholesome products before the assault began.
> “They locked the gates and started throwing stones. We had to escape through three locked gates under attack. If not for the calmness and professionalism of the police and military personnel with us, there would have been casualties,” he explained.
Condemning the attack, NAFDAC vowed to ensure that all those involved are brought to justice.
> “This is not the first time our officials have faced such attacks. In 2022, one of our officers narrowly escaped death in the same market. But no individual or group is above the law,” Iluyomade added.
Prof. Adeyeye described the assault as an attack on Nigeria’s national health security and commended the Nigeria Police and military for protecting the agency’s personnel during the incident.
> “NAFDAC remains fully committed to its duty of safeguarding the health of Nigerians. This incident will only strengthen our resolve to do more,” she said.
To curb the influx of counterfeit products, Adeyeye revealed that the agency has intensified surveillance at Nigeria’s ports and airports. She also disclosed that NAFDAC recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigeria Customs Service to enhance joint monitoring at points of entry.
> “We are stepping up monitoring this season. With Customs, we have intercepted and are destroying over 80 containers of fake and substandard goods,” she stated, noting that some importers disguise pharmaceuticals as spare parts to evade detection.
The NAFDAC boss acknowledged that corruption at points of entry remains a major challenge but stressed that the agency is determined to dismantle the criminal networks behind the importation of counterfeit drugs.
> “Every operation like this weakens their economic base. We will continue until the trade in fake and substandard products is stamped out,” Adeyeye affirmed.
She described the Lagos Trade Fair incident as another reminder of the growing dangers faced by NAFDAC enforcement officers in their ongoing battle against Nigeria’s thriving counterfeit drug market — a criminal trade that continues to threaten millions of lives.
