My business partner and I were locked up in BNI cells in 2013 – Tobbin recounts FDA ordeal

Elder Dr. Samuel Amo Tobbin, Group Chairman of Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited (TPL), has opened up about his distressing experience with the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) in 2013, following the seizure of his company’s products.

Dr. Tobbin recounted his ordeal under the leadership of the former FDA CEO, Dr. Stephen Opuni, during an interview with Bernard Avle on The Point of View on Channel One TV.

In a statement released on Sunday, August 11, TPL and its Group Chairman were exonerated from allegations of importing fake drugs into Ghana.

The High Court in Accra, presided over by Her Ladyship Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, delivered the ruling on July 29, 2024, contradicting the claims made by Dr. Opuni.

The legal battle began on July 19, 2019, when Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited filed a lawsuit against the FDA, accusing the authority of abusing its statutory powers and duties.

Dr. Tobbin revealed how he and his partner were dramatically arrested on the streets near the FDA and later detained in BNI cells for almost an entire day.

He recalled being released in the evening but having to report to the BNI office daily for four days, where they were repeatedly locked up in cells and only released at night.

The Group Chairman described the circumstances surrounding their arrests as “unfortunate.”

“It was rather unfortunate that in 2013 that thing happened to us, Dr Stephen Opuni, happened to be a short-time friend. I knew him when he assumed office as the CEO of the FDA. And this our industry, all the CEOs become our friends automatically.

“We’re friends, but one day he called me and I went there and he complained that we had imported a fake Gesunate Plus, a suppository for children. And we want to kill children, I was shocked, and he was so furious, he was annoyed. Beating his table and saying he would bring me down.

“All his managers and departmental heads were all in the conference room. He was so much annoyed, so furious. So, I also responded and told him, no, you can’t, you can’t do anything against me. I haven’t done anything. So, it was a bit of a misunderstanding.

“By then, I was with my Indian partner, he invited him to come. When we were moving out of the premises of the FDA, the main streets of the FDA, we saw some people in a car and then they crossed our car in a Rambo style, they opened their car and opened ours too and brought us out.

“They said you have to be quiet, anything you say will be used against you at the law court. Those threats. We were quiet and they put us in their car, then they drove us to BNI, now NIB. They sent us to their office at 37. We were locked up there almost the whole day. Then in the course of the evening, we were released.

“The next day they asked us to come, the third day they asked us to come. We were locked till late evening every day when we went.”

Dr. Tobbin disclosed that they were coerced into signing a letter, presented to them during their detention, acknowledging the importation of counterfeit products into the country.

He explained that they signed the letter under duress, seeking to secure their release, unaware that Dr. Opuni intended to publicly use the letter as evidence against them.

“On the fourth day, they brought a letter for us to sign in order to be released. They wrote that we admit to importing fake products. One was on my letterhead and another on my partner’s letterhead. Because we wanted our freedom, we thought that we would be released.

“I signed and my friend too signed. Little did we know that this guy [Dr Stephen Opuni] wanted those documents to publish that we have admitted that indeed we brought those products.

“Amazingly, from that time, the whole thing started. We saw that when we stay quiet, this guy will destroy both companies and my life. A company that I have built from infancy, hawking on the streets, building it gradually to that level. And at that time we had about over 700 staff for Tobinco alone. So, when it happened like that, we also started moving out to the media. We had to tell our story for people to know that what was bought out was not right.”

Background

The controversy dates back to between September and December 2013, when Dr. Kwabena Opuni, then CEO of the FDA, launched a series of actions against Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited. These actions were based on accusations that the company had imported fake drugs into the country.

As part of these measures, the FDA locked Tobinco’s warehouses nationwide, leading to significant embarrassment for the company and its chairman. The regulator also disposed of Tobinco’s products, resulting in substantial financial losses as the products expired rapidly.

Additionally, the FDA banned Bliss GVS Pharma Limited, Tobinco’s principal business partner at the time, from exporting drugs to Ghana. This ban, coupled with the labelling of Tobinco’s drugs as fake, led to the confiscation of the company’s products from customers.

The situation escalated when Dr Opuni reported Elder Dr Tobbin to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), leading to his arrest and detention at the Nima Police Station on December 2, 2013. This incident caused significant distress to his family, relatives, and employees.

Earlier, on September 13, 2013, operatives of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), now the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), intercepted Elder Dr Tobbin and his partner, Mr Kamath, in a dramatic manner. They were detained and questioned for nearly an entire day without any charges being brought against them. The two were later required to report to the NIB office daily and were further questioned by National Security.

After a decade-long legal struggle, Elder Dr Tobbin has finally been vindicated, with the court ruling in his favour and clearing his name of all allegations.

Source:citinewsroom.com