Man drags NBC, NAFDAC, NCPC to court over contaminated products

A man, Mr. Adewuyi Adewunmi has dragged the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Nigeria Consumer Protection Council (NCPC) to court over contaminated Coca Cola products.

The case which is before the Federal High Court in Minna also called on the court to shut down the Nigerian Bottling Company Plc claiming the company engage in selling contaminated coca cola products to Nigerians.

The case which was titled FHC/MN/CS/15/19 had Adewuyi Adewunmi as the Plaintiff with Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) as 1st Defendant, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) as 2nd Defendant and the Nigeria Consumer Protection Council (NCPC) as 3rd Defendant.

The Plantiff claimed the bottles of Sprite he bought in March 2019 were not healthy for consumption for Nigerians.

Read Also: NAFDAC confiscates expired food products in Sokoto

The Counsel to the Plantiff, Barrister Oyelekan Akingbade of Ultimate Chambers asked the Court to order the Defendants to compensate the Plaintiff, Mr. Adewuyi Adewunmi with the sum of N25 million saying it will serve as deterrent to other erring companies who take Nigerians for granted.

According to the Writ of Summons made available to newsmen by Counsel to the Plantiff, Akingbade said “we are asking the Court to compel the 1st Defendant (NBC) to shutdown production across the country pending recertification by the 2nd Defendant.

“We pray the Court to compel the 3rd Defendant (NCPC) to carry out an awareness of contaminated products produced by the 1st Defendant across the country; an immediate confiscation of all such products.

“We seek an order of the Court compelling the 1st Defendant to pay the sum of N20million to the Plaintiff for psychological trauma and general charges and of course the sum of N5million as cost of litigation against the 1st Defendant.”

Akingbade said that although, the expiration dates of the products are in June, 2019 ,  the products are already injurious to the health of Nigerians, “the 1st Defendant’s intention is to produce poisonous substance which are injurious to the health of Nigerians.”

However, Counsel to the 1st Defendant (NBC), Barrister Amuwa Olatunde said that the bottles are produced according to international standards stating the intention of NBC to fight the case to its logical conclusion.

“We are armed to the teeth; we will not handle this case with levity because the corporate image of of the NBC is at stake through damages.”

The Court presided over by Justice Aliyu Aminu Aliyu fixed May 13th, 2019 for further mentioning of the case.