My vindication is worth more than the GH¢93m award - Tobinco

Elder Dr Samuel Amo Tobbin, Group Chairman of Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited (TPL), has stated that his vindication takes precedence over the judgment debt handed to him by the court in his long-running legal battle with the Food and Drugs Authority, which began in 2019. 

The Herald Newspaper recently claimed that TPL and the FDA were cooperating on a disputed GHC94 million judgment debt, implying that TPL is receiving more than it deserves and that the FDA's legal defense was inadequate.

However, in an interview on Channel One TV, Dr. Tobbin emphasized the importance of his vindication in his career, family, and personal lives. He claimed that he cherishes his vindication above all else; otherwise, he would have appealed the court's decision to challenge the payments, emphasizing that his vindication takes precedence above the judgment debt.

“If the court agreed and accepted the damages that we submitted to the court, the total damage we demanded from the court was $18 million to $ 20 million. This is what the court gave us [GH¢93,905,760.79 million]. The joy I have in me is my name and on the internet, we have bad names and bad reputations that I imported fake drugs and all that, which is on the internet now. And it’s my prayer that this good thing [vindication] will clean the past.

“So that tomorrow, my descendants will not come and somebody will tell them that your daddy imported fake products and all that.”

When quizzed if his vindication is more important than the judgment debt, he responded, "more important, if not, I would have gone to the Appeal Court and appealed for what they have issued to us. I said $18 million to $20 million, and calculate by GHC15.5 [dollar rate], plus interests.

“What happened was that when they calculated, they gave us GHC24 million and an additional 500 and something thousand and 60 something thousand [GH¢24,003,157.20, GH¢511,414.35 for demurrage and GH¢67,300, for Bonded warehouse]. This is what the court offered us. This one that the court offered us, we had to work it out 8 years ago. So the 8 years ago interest is what has increased to 90 something [GH¢93,905,760.79], he stated.

Background 

The scandal dates back to September and December 2013, when Dr. Kwabena Opuni, the FDA's then-CEO, started a series of actions against Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited. These measures were based on allegations that the corporation brought counterfeit pharmaceuticals into the nation.

As part of these actions, the FDA shuttered Tobinco's warehouses around the country, causing substantial humiliation for both the company and its chairman.

The regulator also disposed of Tobinco's products, which resulted in significant financial losses because the products expired swiftly.

Additionally, the FDA prohibited Bliss GVS Pharma Limited, Tobinco's primary business partner at the time, from shipping drugs to Ghana. This ban, combined with the branding of Tobinco's healthcare products as phony, resulted in the confiscation of the company's items from customers.

Dr. Opuni reported Elder Dr. Tobbin to the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO), which resulted in his arrest and custody at the Nima Police Station on December 2, 2013. This act created tremendous anguish among his family, relatives, and coworkers.

On September 13, 2013, agents of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), now the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), intercepted Elder Dr Tobbin and his partner, the CEO of Bliss GVS Pharma Limited, S.N Kamath.

They were arrested and questioned for nearly a full day with no charges filed against them. The two were thereafter compelled to report to the NIB office on a daily basis, and National Security questioned them further.

After a decade-long legal battle, Elder Dr Tobbin has now been vindicated, with the court declaring in his favor and clearing his name of all charges.

Source: Lead News Online