Members of the National Union of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employees protested at the Lagos office of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), disrupting operations in reaction to the ban on sachet alcohol.
The protesting union members barricaded the agency’s premises in Isolo, meaning staff who arrived early to resume duty were forced to remain outside the complex.
Recall that NAFDAC has continued the ban on alcoholic beverages sold in sachets and PET bottles below 200 millilitres, despite calls from certain quarters, including the picketers.
The union is demanding the immediate unsealing of affected factories and production lines, warning that sustained enforcement of the policy could trigger significant economic consequences across the industry.
It is the second time this month that union members disrupted the Lagos NAFDAC office over what they described as the agency’s refusal to comply with an alleged federal government directive to suspend enforcement of the ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages in sachets.
The union claimed that directives had been issued by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the National Security Adviser, calling for the suspension of enforcement and the reopening of sealed production lines.
However, NAFDAC dismissed the claims, maintaining that it had not received any official instruction from the Federal Government to halt enforcement of the ban on sachet and PET-bottled alcohol.
Meanwhile, police officers were later seen at the NAFDAC Isolo premises, which dispersed the blockade to allow NAFDAC staff back into the premises.
Representatives of the Director-General of NAFDAC later engaged the protesting union in talks, but the meeting ended without resolution as demonstrators insisted their agitation would continue.
Union leaders presented their concerns during closed-door discussions with a director within the agency and the Special Assistant to the Director-General. However, no agreement was reached.
The protesters are urging NAFDAC to reconsider what they describe as the strict enforcement of the ban on sachet alcohol. Instead, they want the agency to focus on regulating access to such products, particularly by restricting sales to minors, while intensifying public enlightenment campaigns on responsible consumption.
Despite this, protesters say they will not stop until their demands are addressed.