Nollywood star Mary Remmy Njoku has expressed frustration over the quality of drugs sold in Nigeria, citing a recent health scare on a film set.
In a post on Instagram, the actress and filmmaker shared her concern that fake or ineffective medications may be in circulation.
She said she had a bout of food poisoning while working on set and bought Imodium used to treat diarrhea from a popular Nigerian pharmacy.
Despite taking the medicine for three days, her condition didn’t improve.
But once her husband gave her the same drug sourced from abroad, the symptoms eased almost instantly.
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The actress urged the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to launch an investigation.
Her post read: “I want to share a recent experience: I had food poisoning on a set and sent a staff member to buy Imodium from a well-known pharmacy chain in Nigeria.
“A medication I’ve used many times before. I took it for about three days but my symptoms persisted. Then my husband bought a tiny tablet of the same Imodium from abroad and after taking it, my stomach issues subsided within just five minutes.
“This isn’t the first time I have noticed a difference. So I have to ask: What exactly are we being sold in Nigeria? What’s going on with our drugs?
“This is a public health risk and NAFDAC must take it seriously. This is very dangerous.”
Her post has reignited calls for stricter regulation of pharmaceutical products sold in the country.