The Food and Drugs Board (FDB), has made a passionate call on the general public to help it fight the influx of fake goods onto the Ghanaian market.
The FDB's call follows its seizure of some food supplements and unregistered medicinal products including brassieres and underwears, being sold by a Chinese company, Jim World Trading Limited, which the company alleged could cure several ailments.
According to the company which had offices in Kumasi and Accra, the seized items such as the brassieres were for the treatment of breast cancer, the men?s underwear for the treatment of prostate cancer, and a "drinking cup" said to treat Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. It is also alleged to improve blood circulation in the brain.
Mr James Lartey, Head of Communications at the FDB, speaking on the Super Morning Show with Bernard Nasara Saibu on Monday, said before anybody can import, manufacture, distribute or sell any product whether cosmetics, medical devices, medicines, household products and foods in the country, they need to first register with the board.
He said the FDB had information that the company was distributing some brassieres, panties, panty liners and other products as cures for certain ailments but ?before you can distribute these things on the market, we need to look at it, test it, affirm that these products can do what you are talking about and then we permit you to sell it to the general public.?
The same situation, he said, occurred with the sale of some fake sanitary pads which asked people to put it in water and drink it to cure hypertension. He said ?...that thing nearly killed a queen mother right here in Accra,? advising that ?when people are distributing such things which we have not given approval to, the public should not patronize them because they are not safe.?
According to James Lartey, people use mischievous means such as hiding aphrodisiacs in mattresses, to import products into the country and unless members of the public do their part by tipping officials off on these illegal importations, little can be done to curb the practice.
He stressed that ?as much as an institution, we will be going around to check some of these things, the public will have to help by giving us information to some of these issues.?
For such products which have already found their way on to the market, he called on the general public not to patronize these products. If the products are located in any shop, the attention of the Food and Drugs Board should be drawn immediately.
He disclosed that his outfit has started an intensive exercise to seize and destroy products such as 'life prolongation machines' and 'sex enhancement machines' which have not been approved by the FDB.
Officials of Jim World Trading Limited have been arrested and granted bail and they are currently being prepared for court, Mr James Lartey added.
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