The Upper East Regional Office of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has imposed a fine of GH¢25,000 on a pregnant woman for promoting unregistered products on social media.
The offender, identified as Madam Perpetual Akurugu, was found advertising unapproved aphrodisiacs and body enhancement products on TikTok. The products were reportedly stored in kitchen cabinets at her home in Yorogo, a community within the Bolgatanga Municipality.
The FDA explained that, beyond its regular inspections of shops and markets across the region, it also monitors traditional and social media platforms to track illegal advertisements of unregistered and unsafe products.
According to Mr. Abel Ndego, the Acting Upper East Regional Head of the FDA, the discovery was made during one of his routine late-night social media checks.
FDA fines pregnant woman GH¢25k for advertising on TikTok
“I came across a video of the lady advertising some products while speaking in Gurune, a local language. Out of curiosity, I visited her page and found several other videos promoting unregistered and potentially harmful products,” he told the Ghana News Agency (GNA).
Mr. Ndego said he downloaded the videos and shared them with his team for immediate action.
FDA officials later conducted a targeted operation at Madam Akurugu’s residence, where they found the products in her kitchen. “We retrieved all the items and placed her under arrest,” Mr. Ndego stated, emphasizing that her pregnancy would not exempt her from legal consequences.
He expressed concern over the growing use of social media platforms such as Facebook and TikTok to advertise unregulated products, warning that the FDA will continue to clamp down on such activities. “Our duty is to ensure that information and products on the market fully comply with the Public Health Act 851 of 2012,” he stressed.
Mr. Ndego reaffirmed the FDA’s commitment to making the Upper East Region one of the most compliant areas in the country, saying, “We will leave no stone unturned in safeguarding public health.”
In a related operation, an FDA team led by Mr. Jiah Jiato Juah, Regulatory Officer I, conducted inspections in Bolgatanga and discovered several unregistered products in a shop known as Malbas Body Essentials and Cosmetics at Soe. Despite the shop owner’s pleas of ignorance, the team confiscated all unregistered items, including aphrodisiacs and body enhancement products.
Mr. Juah told GNA that the seized products would be taken to the FDA office for further analysis and possible registration.
He also cautioned other traders to desist from selling unapproved products, adding, “This is not the end; we will continue to carry out unannounced inspections to keep unsafe and unregistered items off the market.”
Credit: GNA