BE WARNED! NEW DRUG TRIALS

BE WARNED! NEW DRUG TRIALS
TO DAILY GRAPHIC

Dear Editor, I would be very pleased if you find space in your esteemed newspaper to publish this article.

Where do African governments and their ministries of health continually open the arms in the popular “awa awa atuu” fashion to offer their citizens for the trials of newly manufactured drugs from the western world?

I was listening to the evening news bulletin on the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation on Saturday evening July 18, 2009 when the news said there will soon be the trial of a new malaria drug on African soil through some 17 health research centres. Is our dear Ghana included? That was my first concern.

On this particular issue of testing the potency of new drugs on Africans, I have more questions than answers. Why don’t the pharmaceutical companies test their new drugs on citizens of their respective countries where they operate? Do our African governments do laboratory test and investigations to ascertain the side effects of these new drugs before allowing for the trials?

Are you aware that Africans are commonly referred to as “African guinea pigs” by those western pharmaceutical companies who get to use Africans through cash influence on authorities?

The testing of new drugs often has grave side effects on the health of people who are used. I remember a couple of years back when some states in Nigeria protested against the vaccination of their children on polio citing serious concerns.

Also, I learnt the Navrongo Health Research Centre a few years ago recorded unpalatable results when it tried a lymphatic filiriasis drug on sample of people. Subsequently, some adjustments had to be made.

Big advice is Ghana should be very very cautious with the acceptance of these trials on its already vulnerable citizens.

Peter Atogewe Wedam
Journalsit, Information Services Department
Gambaga

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MoGCSP & ISD TRAIN ISD OFFICERS FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION ON SWCES 15th FEBRUARY, 2024

Image
A day’s training workshop for the roll out of a pending nation-wide public education and sensitization campaign on the Single Window Citizens Engagement Service [SWCES], has taken place in Tamale, the Northern Regional capital, this Thursday, February 15, 2024. The training workshop was organized by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection [MoGCSP] in collaboration with the Information Services Department [ISD]. Group Picture; Participants & Trainers   Some eight Regional Information Officers and their respective metropolitan, municipal as well as district information officers, were the main participants in the training as these officers are the professionals clothed with the requisite skills and ground experience to execute the public education and sensitization campaign on the SWCES in the coming weeks. The said ISD officers were drawn from the Upper East, the Ahafo, Bono and Bono East Regions. The rest came from the Northern Region, Upper West, Savannah and Nor...
Read more

THE POLICE WON'T CONSIDER FAMILY TIES & FRIENDSHIPS IN APPLYING LAW DURING ELECTIONS 21st NOV., 2024

Image
The Paga District Police Commander, ASP Mr. Ziaullah Khalil Ibrahim has assured citizens in the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region and voters in the Chiana-Paga Constituency that, the Police will apply the law firmly and fairly during and after the country’s 2024 general elections. He gave the assurance this Thursday afternoon whilst addressing a meeting with political party youths in Paga and stressed that; “we the Police will not consider family ties and friendships while dealing with all election-related issues”.   ASP Khalil Making His Presentation The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) with funding from the European Union (EU), convened the meeting as part of efforts to ensure peaceful and violence-free elections. This also falls under the bigger EU sponsored programme named; Preventing and Containing Violent Extremism (PCVE).   ASP Khalil noted that though the Chiana-Paga constituency has some worrying numbers of known hot-spots, the d...
Read more

MoFA RECEIVES APPROVAL TO SPEND & RECRUIT IN FIGHT AGAINST HPAI 25th OCTOBER, 2021

Image
  Ghana’s Cabinet has given approval for the release of 43,984,017.70 Ghana Cedis to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in its efforts geared at combating the current outbreaks of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza [HPAI] in the country. The Minister for Food and Agriculture Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, who announced this at a press briefing held this Monday at the ministry, added that the approval came on the back of a proposal his ministry submitted to Cabinet on the subject matter. He said the approval also empowered the ministry to recruit 1,100 veterinary professionals to augment the staff numbers of the Veterinary Services Directorate [VSD] across the country so as to ensure the effective containment of the influenza. Dr. Akoto, Agric Minister making his presention   According to Dr. Akoto, Cabinet additionally directed that 50 percent of the 1,100 professionals representing 550 of them, should be recruited immediately whilst the remaining 50 percent is to be recruite...
Read more