- Raji moved a motion to probe claims that locally fabricated grinding machines contaminate food with heavy metals.
- The motion, citing FIIRO’s DG findings, passed on a voice vote.
- Four committees have six weeks to investigate and report back.
The House of Representatives has ordered a joint committee investigation into claims that locally fabricated grinding machines used in food preparation across Nigeria are responsible for a rising number of organ failure and cardiovascular disease cases in the country.
EKO HOT BLOG reports that the directive followed a motion moved by Honourable Wale Raji, member representing Epe Federal Constituency, during a plenary session. Raji brought the matter under Order 8 Rule 5 of the House rules, describing it as urgent and of national importance.
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At the centre of the concern is a report attributed to the Director General of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO), who, at a recent workshop, linked the widespread use of locally made grinding machines in food preparation to heavy metal contamination. The FIIRO DG reportedly stated that this contamination had been traced to the rising incidence of organ failure and cardiovascular diseases among Nigerians.
Grinding machines of this kind are a staple fixture in markets and households across the country, used daily to process ingredients such as pepper, tomatoes, beans, and grains. Their ubiquity, Raji argued, made the matter all the more urgent.
“This machine is commonly used throughout the country,” Raji told his colleagues on the floor of the House. “And in actual fact, members, only God knows how many we as members have distributed by way of empowering our constituents.”
The lawmaker’s acknowledgement that legislators themselves had handed out these machines to constituents as empowerment tools added weight to his call for investigation.
Raji’s motion was seconded by Ibrahim Ayokunle Isiaka of Ogun State and Idem Unyime of Akwa Ibom State. It passed on a voice vote, with Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, who presided over the session, declaring the ayes in the majority.
In his prayer, Raji asked the House to mandate its Committees on Health Care Services, Industry, Science and Technology, and Commerce to jointly investigate the claims made by FIIRO regarding heavy metal contamination from the machines, and to report back to the House within six weeks for further legislative action.
Deputy Speaker Kalu, while referring the matter to the named committees, commended Raji for raising it. “This motion is a very timely motion,” Kalu said. “It affects the rest of us and I think something urgent needs to be done about it.”
FIIRO, established under the Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, is Nigeria’s foremost applied research institute. The claims referenced in the motion have not yet been made public in a formal report, and the committee’s investigation will be the first step towards establishing their basis and determining what legislative response, if any, is required.
FURTHER READING
If the committees confirm the link between these machines and rising health cases, the House could be compelled to push for stricter manufacturing standards, mandatory food-safety certification for locally fabricated equipment, or even a regulatory clampdown on the distribution and use of machines that fail to meet safety thresholds.
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