Don urges relevant government agencies to regulate antibiotics’ usage
*Antibiotics
Antibiotics
By Olawale Lawanson Alabi
Abeokuta, July 1, 2025 (CrestNewsOnline) Akan Williams, a Professor of Chemistry at Covenant University in Ota, Ogun State has called on relevant government agencies to regulate the use of antibiotics in the country.
Williams, who is of the university’s College of Science and Technology, while delivering the institution’s 34th inaugural lecture on Monday, said this would help to protect public health.
He explained that study results have showed that feed millers surreptitiously fortify their feeds with antibiotics without declaring the same.
”This has been exposing poultry chickens to sub-therapeutic dosages of drugs.”
Williams pointed out that farmers have not been observing the cessation period necessary before poultry birds treated with antibiotics were sold to consumers.
The don in the Department of Chemistry said this situation meant that birds have been exposed to hazardous antibiotics residues.
Williams further said findings indicated elevated levels of antibiotics residues in tissues of locally-produced and illegally-imported meat samples.
He then emphasised the need to discourage self-regulation for safety in the poultry industry.
“Relevant authorities should take steps to reduce and control the use of antibiotics to protect public health.
“Also, an improvement is required in the surveillance capacities of key monitoring agencies to curb the excessive use of antibiotics.”
Williams stated also that enlightenment campaigns were required to educate feed producers and farmers on the dangers inherent in the inclusion of antibiotics in their products.
He appealed to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to intensify efforts in checking the porousness of the country’s trans-national borders.
The Lecture had the theme “The Burdens of Pollution And Imperatives For Environmental Clean-Up”.
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