By THANDIWE MOYO –
THIRTY six illegal drug store operators have been taken to court by the Zambia Medicine Regulatory Authority (ZAMRA).
The six were found wanting after the inspection of 87 drug stores in Lusaka and the Copperbelt.
ZAMRA public relations officer Ludovic Mwape said the organisation was concerned with the escalating number of unqualified persons dealing in pharmaceutical products illegally.
“The authority is not sitting idle, so far 36 operators have been convicted as a warning to the public. We have also intensified inspections to curb the scourge,” he said.
Mr Mwape said the institution was scaling up public awareness to highlight the dangers of buying medicines from unregistered outlets.
He said anyone found wanting risked being imprisoned with a minimum penalty of five years, a fine of 600,000 or both.
He advised members of the public to refrain from buying medicines from unlicenced pharmacies because this would endanger their lives.
Meanwhile, a medical doctor at the University Teaching Hospital has said fake and substandard drugs have adverse effects on patients.
Gerard Kasonde said the substandard and counterfeit drugs lead to side effects and increased resistance to treatment for serious diseases.
“May we refrain from buying drugs at any shop that displays itself as a drug store. Moreover drug stores are not clinics if you have a patient in the house take the patient to a clinic or hospital,” he said.