It has been stated that the Kano state pharmaceutical business, eight years after the second tenure of Sen. Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, has been found in a shameful situation.
This was disclosed by the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Abubakar Labaran Yusuf, when he was receiving executives of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Kano Chapter that called on him in his office.
He lamented that they found pharmaceutical market especially the Drugs and Medical Consumables Supply Agency (DMCSA), the only government approved agency vested with the responsibility of sourcing and supplying quality and affordable drugs to public health facilities, on its knees begging to be saved.
Read Also:
Dabo 2025 Nationl Conference: BUK Offers to Support PSN
Dr. Labaran appreciated the fact that with established drugs wholesale market at Dangwauro things start changing to better, adding that the only thing remains is to enforce the full utilization of the site so as to sanitize drugs market in Kano state.
The commissioner maintained that the secret behind success of pharmaceutical services in the state was that he seeks input of technical working group on anything regarding drugs before making recommendation to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
NNPP Lawmaker ADS Reiterates Commitment to Healthcare, Education, and Youth Empowerment
He asserted that what administration of Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf does is for the humanity, urging handlers of pharmaceutical business to do their activities with caution and God fearing, because fake and expired drugs could be reshaped, repackaged and sent back to market, believing that the God fearing person could not do such kind of unholy business.
Dr. Labaran averred that he was particularly happy with the sponsorship of pharmacists to study in India when he was the commissioner between 2011-2025, recalling that Kano state then has just 51 registered pharmacists and Governor Kwankwaso directed him to screen 100 indigenes of Kano and sent them to India, most of them were currently serving the state.
Earlier speaking, the Council Chairman, Pharm. Mustafa Umar, said that they were at the ministry to register their solidarity to the effort of the commissioner in moving the transformation train of the state health sector.
He appreciated the fact that the return of Dr. Labaran is timely because pharmacists in the state were in serious concern about the fate of the DMCSA, but now feel relaxed as things are coming back to normal so much that the availability of drugs in public health facilities stood at 96% from the previous 30%.
Pharm. Mustafa commended Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf for appointing Pharm. Aminu Bashir as the Permanent Secretary in the state civil service, passionately saying that the appointment is the first of its kind in the history of pharmacists’ family in Kano state and assured that the PS would work diligently to improve civil service in view of his track records.
He then informed the commissioner that in November, this year, Kano state will host conference of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria in which three to five thousand pharmacists are expected to visit the state and solicited for government support.
Signed:
Ibrahim Abdullahi
Information Officer
Ministry of Health
23 January 2025