Kano-Nigeria Versus Pfizer Pharmaceuticals

Friday, 15 June 2007
Kano-Nigeria Versus Pfizer Pharmaceuticals
By Paul I. Adujie
Lawcareer2007@aol.com
New York, United States

Pfizer used innocent Nigerian children in Kano to conduct an inhumane and barbaric tests of Pfizer’s unapproved and unproven drug, Trovan. Pfizer in clear violations of well established pharmacological protocols, proceeded to kill and maim our children in Kano Nigeria. Pfizer committed willful, criminal medical negligence against Nigerian children, as Pfizer conducted illegal, fraudulent and unethical clinical trials in Nigeria, evidences show.

Pfizer’s crimes against innocent Nigerian children and humanity are indefensible! Quite honestly, I find anyone who tries to defends Pfizer with trite public statements, as equally, as disgusting and dismaying, as Pfizer itself. In May 2006, The Washington Post newspapers wrote a very compelling and equally very revealing article, about Pfizer’s criminal acts, in Nigeria, an article written by Joe Stephens a Staff Writer with The Washington Post, published after a year-long investigation into overseas pharmaceutical testing. And now, suddenly, we have a shameless Nigerian trying to become an apologist for Pfizer? Despite all the facts and evidences? Despite evidence of Pfizer’s reckless disregard, for the lives of innocent Nigerian children, who Pfizer killed for profits?

A shameless Nigerian Pfizer apologist, is joining Pfizer to insult Nigerians and Nigeria, insult the memory of 11 dead Nigerian children. He insults the parents of the dead children and the very many children who were maimed as consequence of Pfizer’s egregious crimes! A shameless Nigerian, is volunteering defense for Pfizer, even as an American journalist and his newspaper, have detailed the magnitude of Pfizer’s criminality in Kano! Why would this shameless Nigerian, engage in these gratuitous insults to Nigeria? with his free defense of Pfizer, while an American lawyer Elaine Kusel with the law firm of Milberg Weiss, Bershad & Schulman, only have strong most critical words reserve for Pfizer; And she, and her law firm, have spent several years pursuing Pfizer on behalf of 30 Nigerians families, victims of Pfizer’s crimes.

Professor Dora Akunyili of NAFDAC, has also clearly stated, that Pfizer did not have the authority, before it engaged in its criminal enterprise, involving the lives of Nigerian children!11 Nigerian children are dead, so many other Nigerian children are maimed, as a direct result of Pfizer’s wrong-doing, why would any Nigerian call this, anything else, but, high crimes by Pfizer, for profits, profits, at the expense of Nigerian children!

Why would a Nigerian, shamelessly volunteer defense, for Pfizer? despite the public information and knowledge, as published by the Washington Post, information, to the effect that, the American authorities specifically informed Pfizer not to use the medicine on children, and so, the US FDA, never approved Trovan for treating American children! There is also, the additional, publicly available information, as to the liver damage and deaths associated with Trovan in adult Americans when it was used? Which led the FDA to severely restrict Trovan, according to the Washington Post. Or the fact that Trovan, the Pfizer drug in question, is completely banned by regulators in Europe.

Pfizer is the world’s largest pharmaceutical company. Pfizer knows what the laws and ethical standards are. Pfizer is completely familiar with standard protocols, for clinical trials, Pfizer is not an upstart pharmaceutical company. Pfizer, in complete disregard for the value and worth, of the lives of our children in Kano, engaged in Tuskegee-like illegal experiments, with humans, as if lab rats. Pfizer’s only focus was the bottom line. Profits and more profits! Pfizer conducted its unethical experiments on our children, without the requisite informed consent, and without first obtaining regulatory approvals and or, authorization, from Nigeria’s appropriate authorities and agencies. Pfizer exploited innocent children for profits! Trovan grossed more than a billion dollars a year!

Pfizer, and all pharmaceutical and medical research entities on earth, are familiar with, The Belmont Report; The Helsinki Declaration; The Tuskegee Institute Syphilis Experiment

Pfizer’s criminal acts, and violations in Nigeria, were in clear violation of Nigerian laws, international laws and the international conventions or Declaration of Helsinki that governs ethical medical research, and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Those who are writing favorable opinions for Pfizer, and attempting to shift blames, blames, that rests squarely, on Pfizer’s corporate shoulders, should be ashamed of themselves. And unlike those shameless self-seeking, conniving commentators, who are rushing to defend Pfizer and asking Pfizer to contact them, the only advice I have for Pfizer is to tell it, that, it is in a massive legal, ethical and huge corporate image mess!

How can any Nigerian shamelessly defend Pfizer, after it killed Nigerian children? And according to The Washington Post, an American Congressman, Tom Lentos a senior Democrat from the state California, described Pfizer’s criminal acts in Nigeria as, "absolutely appalling" Congressman Lantos also demanded, that Pfizer open its records for thorough scrutiny. Congressman Lantos, according to Washington Post, described Pfizer’s criminal acts in Nigeria, as "outrageous" even as I wonder why any Nigerian would conclude otherwise, despite all the available facts and evidences of Pfizer’s crimes?

The Foods and Drugs Administration or FDA, an American regulatory body, requires pharmaceutical companies and others, who are sponsors or are conducting medical research overseas, and seeking approval from the FDA, to show proofs that such overseas tests, have been reviewed in advance by regulatory authorities or ethics committee, in such overseas location of research. Pfizer neither sought nor received such review in Nigeria. Pfizer was in, all round, noncompliance, in Nigeria and in America! Pfizer was malicious and calculating, all for Pfizer’s only focus and concerns, profits, profits and more profits!


Pfizer killed Nigerian children for corporate profits. As Pfizer ignored all laws, ethics and industry standard practices. Pfizer engaged in the most egregious violations, as it engaged in its unconscionable experiments with the lives of Nigerian children. We must tell Pfizer that its criminal acts against innocent Nigerians children, stinks to high heavens!

The rest of the world must join Nigerians and Nigeria, in telling Pfizer that it is evil, to put corporate profit above and beyond, the sanctity of human life. Pfizer killed our children and that is wrong in every continent and in every culture and wrong in every climes!

Pfizer, in conducting its clinical trials in Kano, Nigeria, jettisoned and abandoned the medical gold standard, as Pfizer tampered with and tinkered with, every immutable acceptable clinical protocols. Pfizer conducted its trials on our children, against an active comparator. There are indications that Pfizer actually reduced the dosages of medicines, for children not on Pfizer’s experimental and unproven drug Trovan. This is criminal!

Pfizer caused the death of children who were being subjected to their unproven drug, just as Pfizer induced the deaths of our children who were not being treated with Pfizer’s drug! Pfizer exercised arbitrary, capricious and unfettered powers, over our children in Kano!

There is an outcome of investigations of Pfizer’s criminal activities in Nigeria, investigations by Nigerian medical professionals, which is very revealing and mind-numbingly painful. There are disclosures that Pfizer, for profits, deliberately conducted illegal and criminal clinical trials, in breach of all basic medical ethics, and standard protocols, that are known and observed worldwide. Pfizer chose profits, over the lives of Nigerian children. Pfizer’s misconducts, highlights the historical and persistence devaluation of African lives by non-Africans.

This devaluation and worthlessness that they have ascribed and attached to African lives, enabled slavery and enabled colonialism, without qualms; it also enabled the infamous Tuskegee Experiment, in which people of African descent in America, who suffered Syphilis, were deliberately left to die or maimed, as a kangaroo experiment went on, authorized by the American government.

This revelation of Pfizer’s criminal conduct in Kano Nigeria, should lead the world to re-examine and do a rethink, about the origin of AIDS, Ebola and such other epidemics. Pfizer’s illegal, fraudulent and unethical behavior in Nigeria, should cause Africans, and indeed, the whole world, to beam a searing searchlight on pharmaceutical companies. And oil companies, who brazenly pollute our environment, as the bilk billions of dollars!

The world should wonder aloud, whether pharmaceutical companies "manufacture" diseases for profits? The whole world should examine whether new and unexplained epidemics are consequence of unauthorized and unsupervised medical and pharmacological experiments? The world should be asking Pfizer and others like it, whether new and unexplained diseases, some of them drug resistant, are a creation of some pharmaceutical companies?

Could AIDS and Ebola be consequences of unauthorized and unsupervised clinical trials gone haywire, which induced mutations multiplied by mutations? In the past, I would have dismissed this line of thinking as conspiracy theory. But knowing what I know now, knowing that the largest multinational pharmaceutical company as Pfizer, killed and murdered children in Nigeria for profit, it is no longer far-fetched to think that, if Pfizer can kill innocent Nigerian children for profit, nothing is, most probably, beyond Pfizer! It is all coming together now, its all plausible now. Some companies will do, anything for profits!

A couple of years ago, an American judge dismissed a suit, brought against Pfizer, by a New York City law firm, which represents 30 Nigerian families, all, victims of Pfizer’s criminal acts, which killed and maimed so many innocent Nigerian children. The American judge claimed that his court did not possess jurisdiction or power to hear the case, the law firm in New York, is appealing that verdict. American courts have not lacked jurisdiction over Nigerians and Nigeria in the recent pasts! Especially in politically motivated cases to ridicule Nigeria?

But let us examine that verdict, I am familiar with several court proceedings against Nigeria, in American courts in New York, Chicago and Washington DC etc and these law suits, are over events and incidents that transpired in Nigeria. Several of these cases have been concluded, with the American courts clearly assuming and exercising jurisdiction over Nigerians and Nigeria, these, even though, the transactions and occurrences, were in Nigeria, and mostly between Nigerians in Nigeria.

Nigeria’s former head of state, Abubakar Adulsalami, was sued by Chief Enahoro and others, in Chicago, the issues being litigated in that suit, arose from the actions and omissions by the former head of state, during the tenure of Abdulsalami as head of state.

All parties to this suit are Nigerians resident in Nigeria. The American courts, have assumed jurisdiction in this, and other cases, involving Nigerians resident in Nigeria.

In particular, a Nigerian head of state or president has immunity from prosecution for actions undertaken in that behalf as head of state of Nigeria. Such Nigerian head of state, additionally, enjoys diplomatic immunity, all these, notwithstanding, American courts have assumed jurisdiction and have made vexatious pronouncements against Nigeria’s former head of state. Allowing some Nigerian politicians to make hay and political mileage, out of such law suits. This insults Nigeria, at least in my opinion.

Now, suddenly, an American court in New York, has refused to assumed jurisdiction to enable Nigerians litigate and establish their Human Rights, which were violated by Pfizer.

A UN Convention forbids and prohibit these sorts of criminal acts, in which Pfizer indulged itself in, in Nigeria, actions that killed innocent Nigerian children.

Pfizer also violated American laws, an American law that requires American corporations, sponsors of overseas medical research, to first obtain review committee, medical, ethical committees, approvals, prior to engaging in such research abroad, this, Pfizer did do or comply with, in Pfizer’s criminally negligent malpractices in Kano Nigeria. Pfizer is in wholesale violations of Nigerian laws, American laws, International laws, international conventions and protocols. Pfizer is in violation of every basic medical, ethical, standards and in violations of rules, Pfizer is violations of, even decency and common sense!

An American court in New York suddenly lack jurisdiction over Pfizer’s crimes in Nigeria? Could this be because the devalued and worthless lives of Africans are the subject of the litigation? Are the lost lives in question so devalued, worthless and meaningless to some? Is a this refusal to assume jurisdiction merely because a giant multinational company in America would be compelled to account and be made responsible for its criminal acts?

Is Pfizer above the law? Is Pfizer too important to be made to account to Nigerians?