The Federal Government on Thursday approved the appointment of Mr. Ademola Andrew Magbojuri as the new Acting Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

The newly appointed DG is expected to take over from Mrs. Yetunde Oni, who attained the retirement age of 60 years last week.

The directive for Mrs. Oni’s ‘immediate retirement’ was granted via a letter from the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

The directive – dated September 28 – was in response to a letter written to the SGF by Mrs. Oni over the worker’s unrest in the regulatory agency.

Oni served in acting capacity for 18 months following the sack of NAFDAC”s substantive DG, Dr. Paul Orhii.

Magbojuri, who is the most senior director in NAFDAC, until this appointment, was in charge of the agency’s Training and Research Institute in Kaduna.

The new DG also served as Director of Finance and Accounts before he was redeployed to the agency’s Planning, Research and Statistics unit.

It would be recalled, workers of the agency had embarked on an indefinite strike on September 22 to demand among others the immediate removal of Mrs. Oni, whom they said was already due for retirement.

The National Public Relations Officer (PRO), Medical and Health Union of Nigeria, NAFDAC chapter, Mr Ejor Michael, had quoted the union as saying that it wants a new DG or the appointment of the most senior director to run the affairs of the agency.

He said: “She (Oni) clocks 60 years on Thursday and by virtue of public service rule she has to go but she doesn’t want to go.
“”We, therefore, ask the Federal Government to give us a substantive DG or the most senior director in NAFDAC take over same way Oni took over as the most senior in 2016.”