Protest at NAFDAC office as labour warns FG over potential mass layoffs

By Zika Bobby

Protests erupted for the fifth time this year at the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) headquarters, as workers in the food and beverage sector warned of an impending “employment catastrophe.”

Under the banner of the Food, Beverage and Tobacco Senior Staff Association (FOBTOB), hundreds of workers occupied the NAFDAC office on the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway. Their demand: an immediate halt to the enforcement of the ban on sachet alcohol and PET bottles below 200ml.

The protesters, comprising both junior and senior staff, brandished placards with messages such as “Tinubu does not want jobs to be lost” and “Stop destroying local manufacturers.” Union leaders claim the ban directly threatens the livelihoods of 5.5 million Nigerians.

FOBTOB National President, Jimoh Oyibo, warned that the crackdown on regulated factories is a gift to the black market.

“Once you stop licensed manufacturers from producing approved products, you create space for unregulated and dangerous alternatives. This isn’t just about jobs, it’s about public safety and the survival of lawful businesses,” Oyibo stated.

Secretary of the National Union of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employees, Jeffery Igein, said the heart of the dispute lies in a perceived lack of policy alignment, arguing that current enforcement contradicts a recently signed national alcohol policy.

“The alcohol policy has been signed; NAFDAC should have lifted these restrictions,” Igein said. He noted that the ongoing factory sealing undermines President Bola Tinubu’s agenda for job protection and economic growth.

Despite claims from protesters that the Federal Government had ordered a pause on the ban, NAFDAC Director-General, Mojisola Adeyeye, remains firm, maintaining that the agency has received no official communication to halt enforcement, leaving the industry in a state of precarious limbo.

Similar protests are reportedly gaining momentum in Abuja and Aba, signalling a nationwide industrial crisis. For the workers on the front lines, the message is clear: they will not relent until their factories and their futures are reopened.