THE ROLE OF NATIONAL AGENCY FOR FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION AND CONTROL NAFDAC IN CONSUMER PROTECTION IN NIGERIA A CASE STUDY OF SOME SELECTED PURE WATER BOTTLING FIRMS IN ENUGU

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY NAFDAC

was established by decree 15 of 1993 as amended by decree No 1999 to regulate and control importation, exportation, manufacturing, advertisement, distribution, sale and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, the target chemicals bottled water, all non as regulated product. The importance of food and drugs to man and animal particularly is very obvious. They need food in order to grow and sustain life. While life goes on and because of the inherent deposition to illness, the organs of the body may not always function properly. Such body dysfunction may be due to infection arising from the in take of contaminated food or water. It may also result from the eect of corrosive or poisonous chemicals on the body or due to breakdown following exhaustive work on degeneration of the body organs. These situation of ill health provided the compelling need for drugs in order to modify functioning of the body and restore it to normal. To be acceptable, the drugs must not be deterious to the body but should rather produce a positive eect, which leads to restoration of normal life. In like manner, cosmetics should have no harmful eect on the body to which they are applied. It is the duty of governments to protect the health and the citizens. The challenge in this regard, a part from that of providing treatment facilities for the sick, is to prevent the hazards arising from unwholesome foods, ineective, substandard and adulterated drugs, toxic and corrosive cosmetics and chemicals as well as contaminated water.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Foods, drugs, cosmetics water etc are common products, there is no single home where soap, salt, vegetable oil, body cream, water, paracetamol, tooth paste etc are not used daily, whereas for other product like clothing, utensil, furniture which quality can censorial be rightly appraised it is not so with the former products for example can any individual rightly and safely declare the constituents of his favorite imported or local biscuits just with his sensory organ? It is impossible. This is because to do such requires: i) Determining the condition under which the product is manufactured. ii) Ascertaining its physico-chemical and microbiological constituents. iii) Determining whether the prepared food has more nutritional value than another. iv) Determining the toxicity on human being. v) Ensuring that its constituents is what the label says it is etc. vi) Ascertaining whether the performance of the product will meet consumers need.