By ABDULKADIR KHALIF

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Puntland politicians are whipping up a storm over an ‘increased’ sale of viagra to the unsuspecting public.

On Tuesday, local health officials appearing before a parliamentary committee were put to task to explain how they would tame what the MPs said was an increasing risk of exposing the public to health hazards by regulating the sale.

It was the first time the legislators from the northeastern state of Somalia were raising such an issue, a previously held taboo and often discussed behind closed doors. It raised banter on social media too.

“The medicine (viagra) results in a lot of dangers, including the deaths of some users,” MP Abdigani Dhashane said at the sitting.

His statement generated murmurs among other legislators. In reaction, Mr Dhashane added: “there is no embarrassment [to discuss this issue]. This is a serious health matter.” 

Some members of the Puntland legislative assembly called for a ban on the drug primarily used on prescription to treat impotence in men.

Puntland Health Minister Jama Farah Hassan, who appeared before the parliamentary team in the company of his deputy Sayid Omar Guled, had been invited to discuss medicines control when MPs raised concerns about viagra and other sex enhancement drugs.

The legislators argue that uncontrolled usage of medicines poses more negative side effects than curative advantages.

Also read: Zambia bans 'Viagra' energy drink

Mr Hassan promised more inspections of the sex enhancement drugs and other health products.

“If the concerns are ascertained, we shall take appropriate actions,” the Health minister added.

If administered under a doctor’s watch, viagra, also known as sildenafil, can help treat impotence and erectile dysfunction by increasing blood flow to particular areas of the body, such as men’s sexual organs.

But it could also have side effects, especially in patients with heart or kidney ailments.

Also read: 20 years of Viagra: Has the 'wonder pill' lived up to its promise?