A trial was opened on Tuesday in The Gambia’s capital Banjul over the deaths of children linked to the consumption of cough syrup produced by the India-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals.
In September 2022, The Gambia withdrew numerous cough and cold medications, including products made by the Indian laboratory, Maiden Pharmaceuticals, from which the contaminated syrups had originated. The action was taken in response to the tragic deaths of a minimum of 70 young children due to kidney failure.
Salieu Taal, the president of The Gambia Bar Association and one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs confirmed that the lawsuit was filed by nineteen plaintiffs in July on behalf of their family members who were victims of the incident.
The legal actions was filed against five defendants, including Maiden Pharmaceuticals, local distributor Atlantic Pharmaceuticals, the Medical Controls Agency (MCA), the Ministry of Health, and Attorney General Dawda A. Jallow.
According to the families, they need acknowledgment from the defendants that the children lost their lives due to the consumption of the medicines from their company. Furthermore, the families are pursuing an admission that the MCA failed in its legal obligation to oversee the quality and safety of medicines. Their claim also includes a demand for damages of 15 million Dalasis (approximately $230,000) per child.
However, none of the five defendants were present during the proceedings on Tuesday. In response to this, the health ministry, MCA, and attorney general requested a delay in the trial’s commencement, but the judge rejected this motion and directed the three entities to pay 10,000 Dalasis to the plaintiffs.
The proceedings was adjoined to November 7 byJustice Ebrima Jaiteh of the High Court in Banjul.
