Church leaders under the Ecumenical Synods of Bishops, Archbishops, Apostles and Senior Clergy have said churches do not have the means to detect fake or adulterated anointing oil, calling on the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to strengthen enforcement.
The clerics spoke after NAFDAC uncovered an illegal factory producing fake Goya oil in Lagos.
Goya oil is commonly used in churches as anointing oil for prayers, healing and spiritual protection. It is also popular as a premium cooking oil and for skin care.
Speaking with Sunday PUNCH, the International Secretary of the group, Osazee William, praised NAFDAC for the raid, describing it as timely.
“God bless NAFDAC officials for such a wonderful discovery. This shows that NAFDAC is rising to the occasion,” he said.
William explained that many churches use Goya oil for prayers and that once prayers are said over it, it is treated as anointing oil.
He stressed that churches cannot be expected to test products brought by worshippers.
“It is not possible for churches to be checking whether oil brought by people is fake. As you know, God can even use water to anoint a person, not only oil,” he said.
“So the simple truth is that it is the duty of regulatory agencies, like NAFDAC has done now, to find and stop those producing adulterated products.”
On Friday, NAFDAC warned Nigerians against using Goya oil sold in plastic (PET) bottles, saying such products are fake and unsafe.
The warning was given during a media briefing at the agency’s Investigation and Enforcement Directorate office in Lagos.
The Director of Investigation and Enforcement, Dr Martins Iluyomade, said Goya oil packaged in plastic bottles is not approved by NAFDAC.
“Goya oil sold in plastic bottles is fake. The only approved product is the one imported in its original bottles by authorised dealers,” Iluyomade said.
He revealed that NAFDAC discovered a large illegal factory at Oke-Arin Market in Idumota, Lagos, where fake Goya oil was being produced.
According to him, operators mixed burnt palm oil with colouring agents and repackaged it as Goya oil to deceive buyers.
“We discovered a factory producing fake Goya oil. Palm oil, colouring agents, stoves and empty bottles were recovered at the site,” he said.
Iluyomade warned that many Nigerians were unknowingly using the dangerous product, especially those sold in PET bottles. He advised churches and religious groups to stop selling or using Goya oil packaged in plastic bottles during services and gatherings.
He added that offenders would be prosecuted and urged the public to report suspected cases of counterfeiting to the nearest NAFDAC office.
The NAFDAC director also disclosed that a suspect, Moses Nelson, was arrested over the distribution of fake and adulterated alcoholic drinks.
According to him, empty foreign alcohol bottles, sachets and plastic-bottled alcohol were recovered from the suspect’s residence in Badagry, Lagos State.
Iluyomade warned counterfeiters to stop their activities, assuring Nigerians that NAFDAC would continue to go after anyone endangering public health in the pursuit of quick profit.
