Tobinco Boss Explains Why He Waited 6 Years To Sue FDA: "He Was Too Formidable"
- The chairman of Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited has explained why he delayed his legal action against the FDA
- He stated that he feared suing the FDA for alleged abuse of authority in 2013 due to the presence of Dr Stephen Opuni
- According to him, Dr Opuni was a very influential figure and could have used his influence to crush him even further
The Group Chairman of Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited (TPL), Dr Samuel Amo Tobbin, has shared his alleged ordeal at the mercy of the former FDA boss, Dr Stephen Opuni.
In 2013, the FDA, led by Dr Stephen Opuni, had confiscated products imported to Ghana by Tobinco, stating that the products were unwholesome.
Source: Facebook
According to Dr Tobbin, following the seizure of the initial batch of unwholesome products, the Opuni-led FDA carried out a systemic closure of all his warehouses and caused further confiscation and destruction of his products.
He said while only a few of the Tobinco products were indeed unwholesome because they had expired, Dr Opuni had allegedly leveraged the situation to destroy large chunks of his inventory.
He explained that while he knew he had the right to initiate legal action against Dr Opuni and the FDA during that year or the year after, he said he feared the significant influence of the former FDA boss would scuttle any chance of him attaining justice.
Dr Tobbin described Dr Opuni as having formidable influence in Ghana’s political sphere and admitted that feared going against him.
Tobbin reaches out to political friends
Dr Tobbin noted that as a less confrontational way to get the former FDA boss to reason with him, he had reached out to two prominent figures in the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the National Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketiah and former president John Dramani Mahama, to intervene on his behalf.
He claimed that a four-hour meeting between Asiedu Nketiah and Dr Opuni concerning his situation had proven futile.
He also alleged that not even then-president Mahama could rein in Dr Opuni from going ahead with his seizures and destruction of the products.
Dr Samuel Amo Tobbin also said he was reluctant to go to court due to the slow judicial process in the country.
He said his recent legal action against the FDA over the seizures was initiated in 2019 following the fall of Dr Opuni and yet it still took about five years to come to a conclusion.
Dr Tobbin said throughout his ordeal he suffered constant media attacks from Dr Opuni, who he claimed had weaponised the media against him and his company, discrediting him in the public eye.
He noted he could not counter such attacks.
Tobinco exonerated over fake medicine scandal
YEN.com.gh also reported that Tobinco had been exonerated after being accused of importing fake medicines.
An Accra High Court, giving a ruling on July 29, 2024, stated that the FDA and Dr Opuni had abused indeed their power.
It held that Opuni targeted Tobinco without reason and his departure from the FDA eased pressure on the company.
Proofread by Bruce Douglas, senior copy editor at YEN.com.gh
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Source: YEN.com.gh
