By Ragan M. Conteh

“What is frustrating is that, I saw as low as 10 years old boys selling Coco Samba in the streets. We don’t even know whether such drug is good for human consumption. We don’t even know who certifies this product to be sold in Sierra Leone’s public.”

The Chairperson of Parliamentary Health Committee in Parliament, Hon. Wuyata Songa, made the submission on Thursday 1st February, 2024 when addressing officials from the Pharmacy Board at the New Administrative Building in Parliament.

According to Hon. Songa there is no monitoring mechanism from the Pharmacy Board to ensure that such drug is being tested before going to the public.

“The pharmacy Board is killing this country. All of you sitting here before me are killing Sierra Leoneans. You are not doing justice for Sierra Leone at all. The direction that Sierra Leone is going is sad,”she lambasted.

A member of the Committee also alleged that Garrison Street traders are selling all types of sex stimulants and nothing has been done about by the board.

The Committee, in Public Transportation, people are giving medication to Sierra Leoneans with no proper prescription, an act the Committee perceived as dangerous.

The Committee pointed out that if the board is serious about tackling the illegal selling of uncertified drugs, they should sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with motor driver’s Union to stop the selling of fake medicines to the people of Sierra Leone.

They said the Act is also weak which has  also been part of the problem in the institution.

However, Dr Komeh said as part of their mechanisms to addressing all the issues in drug circulation in the country, the Chief Minister, Moinina Sengeh, is now in charge, adding that the President has also come onboard to address all the challenges.

Dr. Komeh said, in the next couple of months, that they had been doing their best to make sure all the concerns are being tackled.