The Federal Government on Thursday reported the deaths of 84 children between the ages of two months and seven years from the contaminated “My Pikin” teething mixture.
It said that since the case broke in November 2008, the number of deaths had continued to rise just as the number of cases reported in hospitals had increased to 111.
It, therefore, ordered the immediate surrendering of the deadly product by all drug pharmacies, government medical stores, patent medicine stores, clinics, and hospitals in the country to the nearest office of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control.
In a press statement in Abuja, the Minister of Health, Prof Babatunde Osotimehin, said the government was deeply concerned about the number of deaths and would leave no stone unturned in getting to the root of the matter.
He asked all mothers and the public to immediately stop giving the medicine to their children since it was not a prescription medication and was poisonous for the well-being of their children.
Osotimehin asked parents to quickly get in touch with Dr Henry Akpan (0807626718), Dr Oladejo (08062278615), and NAFDAC (09-6702823), if they suspected that their children were sufferring from the use of the product.
“The poison has caused many deaths in children between two months to seven years old in Nigeria. Some 111 have been reported since last November and 84 children are reported dead.
“The deaths of the children is a great loss to the nation. The Federal Government sincerely regrets this painful incidence and sympathises with the nation and the families directly affected.
“Government will leave no stone unturned to find answers to the many questions being asked by Nigerians and also ensure that such unfortunate incidents do not occur again.”
Commenting on the incident on Thursday, Colostrum International, a civil society group, urged the government to ensure justice.
It cautioned government against interfering in the investigation into the incident.
In an interview with our correspondent, the Public Relations Officer of the group, Mr. Ayoyinka Dahunsi, said, ”I believe that those who lost their children to the incident will not be happy if justice is not done. Government must ensure justice. We all know the type of society we live in. Some people may want to kill the evidence.”
The PUNCH had on November 25 2008 exclusively reported that the Lagos University Teaching had begun investigations into the deaths of 10 children allegedly caused by a teething mixture.
Also, on November 25 2008, the immediate past Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof. Dora Akunyili, at a news conference in Lagos, admitted that the teething mixture allegedly caused the death of the children.
Akunyili, who put the death toll at 25, said that the contamination of the mixture was caused by the addition of a chemical, diethylene glycol, to some batches of the drug. She explained that the mixture allegedly caused kidney failure in the children.
NAFDAC had on November 25 shut Barewa Pharmaceutical Limited, the manufacturer of the mixture. It also quizzed the managing director of the firm, the quality assurance manager and the supplier of the chemical.
The agency last month said that the death toll from My Pikin had increased to 51. It stated that the drug had been mopped up from all over the country.
However, since a former minister announced the setting up of the committee nothing had been had from the government on the incident.
The PUNCH had also exclusively reported on Tuesday that the Federal Government might have lost interest in the matter and might dump the investigation because of the ”bad publicity” it could attract for the country.