The plaintiffs have filed a suit against Maiden Pharmaceuticals, Atlantic Pharmaceutical, Medical Controls Agency, Ministry of Health and Attorney General following the consumption of a cough syrup manufactured by Maiden Pharmaceuticals leading to the deaths of several children.
The plaintiffs are asking for 15 million Dalasis per child for pain & suffering and deaths as well as damages.
The director of Civil Litigation and International Law Department, Binga D, counsel for the 3rd, 4th and 5th defendants served the plaintiffs’ counsel, Y. Senghore with a notice of motion and ordered for granting an extension of time to the said defendants within which to file their statement of defence – also an order for the applicants’ statement of defence filed on the 6 November 2023 to be deemed properly filed as if leave had been previously sought and obtained. The motion was supported by a number of paragraphs.
Counsel Y. Senghore objected to the first motion that stated that the 3rd, 4th and 5th defendants’ seeking for an extension of time within which the state is to file their statement of defence.
It would be recalled that on 25 October 2023, the High Court struck out the motion filed by the state seeking an extension of time and the court awarded a cost of D10, 000 to the plaintiffs.
However, yesterday, the State counsel further filed the 3rd, 4th and 5th defendants’ statement of defence, disclaiming several paragraphs of the plaintiffs’ statements. The defendants denied that around the month of November 2021, certain cough syrups were imported into The Gambia and administered by the Medical doctors.
The defendants’ statement of defence denied a paragraph of the plaintiffs’ statement of claim and further stated that the death of the victims was a result of deliberate concealment and misrepresentation of documents by the exporters of the drugs in issue.
It also indicated that the 3rd and 4th defendants denied a paragraph of the plaintiffs’ statement of claim and further stated that the 1st and 2nd defendants were responsible for the deaths of the children and not the 3rd and 4th and defendants.
The 3rd, 4th and 5th defendants admitted that the statement of claim the plaintiffs made only to the extent that the victims died due to intake of contaminated drugs imported from India and sold in The Gambia.
However, the 3th 4th and 5th defendants further denied each and every allegation contained in the statement of claim of the plaintiffs as though the same were herein set out and traversed seriatim.
The case was adjourned until 21 November 2023 for continuation.
