The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Moji Adeyeye, says she came back to Nigeria after spending several decades in the United States because of her desire to serve the country and rebuild the agency, not to make personal gains.
Adeyeye made the remarks on Monday while answering a journalist who asked when she intended to leave office. The question generated laughter, after which she highlighted the difficulties she encountered when she assumed leadership and the reforms achieved under her administration.
She explained that NAFDAC inherited a debt burden of N3.2 billion when she took over in 2017. The liabilities included N1.6 billion in unpaid taxes and approximately N700 million owed to staff who travelled for Good Manufacturing Practice inspections.
She also disclosed that between 70 and 80 per cent of the agency’s equipment was not operational at the time.
According to Adeyeye, her administration focused on clearing the outstanding debts and strengthening NAFDAC’s regulatory operations, with N3.1 billion reportedly paid by November 2018.
She added that NAFDAC advanced from maturity level one to level three in March 2022, making it the third regulatory agency in Africa to achieve the milestone.
Speaking about why she returned to Nigeria, Adeyeye said she had spent 37 years in the United States, where she retired happily before deciding to return home.
“I came here to serve,” she said, while condemning what she described as the practice of using public office for personal enrichment.
Adeyeye also called on any contractor who claimed she had demanded money from them to come forward and make the allegation publicly.
Responding to questions about when she would resign, the NAFDAC boss said her achievements in office should speak for themselves.
