The Chairman, Nigeria Association of Patent and Propriety Medicine Dealers in Kano State, Alhaji Musbahu Khalid, on Sunday, expressed the concern that over 50,000 members of the association have been out of jobs following the government’s decision to relocate them to the Kano Economic City at Dangwauro area.
According to Khalid, shops in the new location are expensive and many of the patent store owners may not be able to afford the rent.
The PUNCH reports that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control in collaboration with the Pharmacist Council of Nigeria, last Monday, raided and sealed not less than 1,321 patent medicine stores in the Sabon Gari open market of Kano.
The operation took place 72 hours after the Federal High Court ordered the drug dealers to vacate their open market premises and relocate to the Coordinated Wholesale Centre at Dangwauro village on Zaria Road in the state.
The raid and shutting down of the drug stores provoked a protest by the patent medicine store owners, who marched to the Kano State Government House to express their displeasure.
Speaking with our correspondent on the phone on Sunday, the leader of the patent medicine dealers contended that relocating would increase their running costs and result in a hike in the prices of medicines.
“We have been sent out of business for about nine days now. Do they want us to engage in armed robbery, kidnapping, banditry, or what? The government should consider its action, especially with the current economic predicament in the country.
“If we relocate to the new place, a sachet of paracetamol, which costs N70 now, would cost N400 because each of our members will be expected to pay nothing less than N2. 5m as rent annually.
“The shops at the economic city are not wholly owned by the state government; they are owned by private individuals.
“Besides, the shops are not only too small in size but are also grossly inadequate to accommodate all our members when we relocate there.
“For example, in one plaza at our present location, we have over 1,000 shops, and most of the shops we are occupying now at the Sabon Gari market and Mallam Kato are owned by our members while the rest are being rented at cheaper rates.”
Khalid since the association had appealed the judgment, which ordered their relocation, the government ought to have waited for the outcome of the appeal before ejecting them.
“The state government should have allowed us to stay in our places of business for two to three months or until after the determination of our case by the Court of Appeal since we have appealed the judgment of the Federal High Court in Kano.
“We are appealing to the government to provide us with a more suitable place to continue with our business because we’re law-abiding citizens,” he said.
