Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s candidate in the 2023 presidential election, has expressed his disappointment over the upcoming departure of British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) from Nigeria after five decades of operation.
He expressed the feeling in the wake of GSK’s declaration to cease its manufacturing of prescription medicines and vaccines within the country.
In a communication submitted to the Nigerian Exchange Limited, the multinational pharmaceutical corporation disclosed its intention to shift to a third-party direct distribution approach for its pharmaceutical offerings.
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In response to this development, Peter Obi expressed his sentiments through a tweet on Friday evening. He lamented that the company’s decision to depart from Nigeria is particularly disheartening, indicating a lack of optimism in the country’s potential as a productive business environment.
He attributed these outcomes to the collective mismanagement of our economy over time.
“As a result, millions are losing their jobs and our poverty index is worsening, even though we’re already being perceived as the world’s poverty capital,” he said in the post.
Today, I was saddened to hear that GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), is exiting Nigeria after 51 years of operation.
Their reason for leaving Nigeria is even more disheartening; they no longer perceive a prospect for the country as a business environment that would be anchored on— Peter Obi (@PeterObi) August 4, 2023
He further noted that “The multinationals that are leaving our country have not only created jobs but have created immeasurable training that contributed immensely to our human capital development over the years.
“Now they are leaving our shores one after the other. GSK which has a manufacturing facility in Agbara, Ogun State on over 25 hectares of land had directly employed over 400 highly technical workers like pharmacists, microbiologists, biochemists, chemists, dentists, doctors etc, and also employed over 1000 other staff.
“It indirectly provided jobs and business opportunities for thousands of Nigerians across the nation. They are now leaving all these behind, and pushing more people back into unemployment.
“I have consistently maintained that in turning our nation around, we must move the economy from consumption to production, part of which included encouraging and supporting local and foreign investments, like GSK, in the country.
“The creation of an environment that creates and sustains multinationals to invest in our country is key to our dream of greatness. In the new Nigeria that we seek to create, the emphasis on production will encourage investors to stay and expand on our shores.”
The decision of GlaxoSmithKline, which was incorporated in Nigeria in June 1971, added to the growing number of multinational companies leaving Nigeria due to an unfriendly business environment.
The pharmaceutical multinational company is the producer of popular products like Panadol, Ribena, Lucozade, Macleans, augmentin, and Andrews Liver Salt, among others. Nigerians are concerned that its exit will result in a further hike of its pharmaceutical products.