I inherited ₦3.2bn debt, ₦500m unaccounted for when I assumed office — NAFDAC DG, Adeyeye
The Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, has disclosed that she inherited a staggering debt of ₦3.2 billion and ₦500 million in unaccounted funds when she assumed office. She made this revelation during an appearance on Channels Television’s _Inside Sources_ on Friday.
Adeyeye emphasized the gravity of the financial situation she encountered, noting that such a scenario in a developed country like the United States would have led to the agency being declared bankrupt. She said, “When I got to NAFDAC, I met ₦3.2 billion in debt, and ₦500 million missing with no account for it before I came. I asked them if they had capital projects they used the money for. At that time, ₦1 million was equivalent to $2,000. So multiply $2,000 by ₦500 million. I was coming from the US, where money was hard to get. You worked hard for your money. I could have given up, but I saw an opportunity and seized it.”
Adeyeye shared that the situation was dire enough that if it had occurred in the US, NAFDAC would have been taken over by a financial house due to bankruptcy. Despite the challenges, she was determined to bring about positive changes. She initiated cost-cutting measures, including adopting technology to reduce expenses. “We started Zoom meetings in 2018. Many people didn’t like it because they were used to getting travel allowances and DTAs. But we had to save,” she explained.
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Commenting on the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protests against hunger and hardship, Adeyeye attributed the current challenges in Nigeria to six decades of societal decay. Reflecting on Nigeria’s past, she recounted the efforts made by her husband and other pro-democracy activists, including President Bola Tinubu, in fighting for the country’s democracy. She expressed her personal pain at the state of the nation, citing the decline in values, the state of the pharmaceutical industry, and the general quality of healthcare delivery.
Adeyeye stressed that Nigeria cannot achieve peace and prosperity without addressing corruption, which she described as having deeply infiltrated the fabric of society. “We cannot be blessed without a transparent society. We cannot be blessed if we have corruption. Corruption has eaten into the fibre of society,” she said.
The NAFDAC DG’s revelations have further highlighted the urgent need for transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s public institutions, particularly as the country grapples with economic and social challenges.
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