Protest Rocks NAFDAC Lagos Office Over Planned Crackdown on Sachet Alcohol

A coalition of consumer rights groups on Monday staged a protest at the Lagos office of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) over the agency’s planned enforcement of a ban on sachet alcoholic beverages.

The protest followed a recent press briefing by NAFDAC, during which the agency’s Director-General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, reportedly announced the commencement of enforcement actions against sachet alcohol products.

Led by Olufemi Lawson under the banner of the Coalition for the Protection of Consumers’ Rights, the demonstrators condemned the proposed enforcement, describing it as “draconian, economically insensitive and poorly conceived.”

Addressing journalists at the protest venue, Lawson argued that the move contradicts the Federal Government’s ongoing efforts to address unemployment and ease economic hardship. He warned that the enforcement would negatively affect manufacturers, distributors, retailers and consumers, while also exposing what he described as regulatory inconsistencies within NAFDAC.

Lawson questioned why sachet alcoholic beverages that were previously tested, registered and approved by the agency are now being labelled unsafe.
“The problem of underage drinking is a failure of regulation and enforcement, not a crime of the product itself,” he said. “These products are clearly labelled ‘not for sale to persons under 18’. If minors still gain access, then enforcement at the point of sale has failed.”

The coalition also dismissed claims that sachet alcohol products contain excessive alcohol levels, noting that licensed distilleries in Nigeria operate within internationally accepted alcohol-by-volume standards. It further rejected environmental concerns, pointing out that sachet packaging is widely used across several consumer goods, including water and household detergents.

Protesters carried placards bearing messages such as “Suspend the Sachet Alcohol Ban,” “Save Jobs, Save Livelihoods,” and “Regulation, Not Prohibition.” They warned that a sustained enforcement would lead to widespread job losses across the distillery value chain, affecting factory workers, distributors, transporters and retailers.

Among its demands, the coalition called for the immediate suspension of the enforcement, the reopening of sealed factories, and the initiation of dialogue and stakeholder consultations aimed at developing inclusive, data-driven regulatory solutions.

The group also appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Assembly to intervene, cautioning that failure to address the issue could spark nationwide protests across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

NAFDAC officials at the Lagos office did not engage with the protesters, and the agency had not issued an official response to the demonstration as of the time of filing this report.