In this Act reference to the sale of an article includes reference to the supply of an article as a sample for the purpose of inducing persons to buy by retail the substance of which the article consists or which it comprises.

[Act No. 21 & 22 Vict., c. 90, Act No. 21 of 1966, First Sch., Act No. 3 of 1968, s. 2, Act No. 8 of 1968, Sch., Act No. 13 of 1980. Sch., Act No. 12 of 1992, s. 2, Act No. 2 of 2002, Sch., Act No. 25 of 2015, Sch., Act No. 5 of 2019, Sch.]

The persons appointed under subsection (1)(f) shall be appointed by the Cabinet Secretary from among members nominated by their relevant professional associations, each of which shall nominate two candidates in each category taking into consideration gender, ethnicity and regional balance.

A person shall not qualify for appointment as a member of the Board under subsection (1)(e) and (1) unless such person is the holder of a minimum of a diploma in the relevant field from an institution recognized in Kenya and has at least five years managerial experience.

The Board shall be responsible for the regulation of health products, technologies and the profession of pharmacy.

The Board shall meet at such times and places as it deems necessary or expedient for the transaction of its business.

The Chairman shall preside at all meetings of the Board, and in his absence for any reason at a meeting the Board shall choose one of its number who shall act in his stead during such absence.

The Chairman at any meeting of the Board shall, in addition to his deliberative vote as a member of the Board, have a casting vote.

The quorum of the Board shall be five, of whom three shall be pharmacists.

The Chief Executive Officer shall cause details of all business conducted or transacted at meetings of the Board to be entered regularly in a minute book kept for the purpose under his direction. The minutes of the proceedings of each meeting shall be submitted at the meeting following, and, if then passed as correct, shall be confirmed by the signature of the Chairman and shall, when so confirmed, be prima facie evidence in all courts and places that the minutes are an accurate record of the proceedings so recorded.

The powers of the Board shall not be affected by any vacancy in the membership thereof, nor by any defect in the appointment or qualifications of a person purporting to be a member of the Board.

There shall be a registrar of the Board who shall be the Chief Executive Officer of the Board competitively recruited and appointed by the Board upon such terms and conditions of service as shall be determined by the Board upon the advice of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.

The registrar shall perform such duties and exercise such powers, in addition to those required under the provisions of this Act to be performed and exercised, as the Board may from time to time direct.

The Registrar shall be responsible to the Board for the day to day management of its affairs.

The Registrar shall hold office for a term of four years, but shall be eligible for reappointment once subject to good performance.

The registrar shall keep a register of pharmacists and specialist pharmacists in the prescribed form.

The registrar shall keep a Roll of pharmaceutical technologists in the prescribed form.

The register kept under this section shall be automated for the purposes of sharing information under the National Single Window System established under section 3 of the National Electronic Single Window System Act.

Every application by a person to be registered as a pharmacist shall be made in writing in the form prescribed and shall be addressed to the registrar.

Every application by a person to be entered in the Roll of pharmaceutical technologists shall be made in the prescribed form and shall be addressed to the registrar.

Any person who satisfies the Board that he holds a diploma in pharmacy from any college recognised by the Board in Kenya shall, subject to this Act, be entitled to have his or her name entered in the register.

Upon the registration of a pharmacist, the registrar shall, on payment of the prescribed fee, issue a certificate of registration in the prescribed form:

Provided that fee shall be payable if the pharmacist was, at the commencement of this Act, already registered under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Cap. 128 of 1948) (now repealed).

The Registrar shall issue to every Pharmaceutical technologist whose name is entered in the Roll, a certificate of enrolment in the prescribed form, upon payment of the prescribed fee.

The Registrar shall issue, in accordance with rules made under this Act, a practising license authorizing registered pharmacists or enrolled pharmaceutical technologists to practice as registered pharmacists or enrolled pharmaceutical technologists.

Every practising license shall expire at the end of the practising year in which it was issued.

The practising year shall be from 1st January to 31st December.

Any registered pharmacist or enrolled pharmaceutical technologist who practices without a valid practising license in line with subsection (1) commits an act of professional misconduct.

For purposes of this Act, it shall be a requirement for every practising registered pharmacist and enrolled pharmaceutical technologist, practising in their private capacity, government, faith based institutions, non-governmental organizations, training institutions, research organizations or any other institution, to have a valid practising license.

A registered pharmacist or enrolled pharmaceutical technologist issued with a license under this Act may apply for renewal of the license in the prescribed form at least thirty days before the date of expiry thereof.

A registered pharmacist or an enrolled pharmaceutical technologist who fails to renew a license within the prescribed period shall, when applying for a renewal, be required to pay such late application fee as shall be prescribed.

If the registrar sends by post to any registered pharmacist a registered letter addressed to him at his address on the register inquiring whether he has ceased to practice as a pharmacist or has changed his address and receives no reply to the letter within six months from the date of posting it he may delete the name of that person from the register:

Provided that the Board may, on the application of the person whose name has been so deleted and on payment by him of such fee as may be prescribed, direct the registrar to restore the name to the register.

It shall be the duty of the Principal Registrar of Births and Deaths, on receiving notice of the death of any registered pharmacist, forthwith to transmit to the registrar a certificate under his own hand of death, with particulars of the time and place such of death.

Whenever a name is added to or deleted from the register for any cause the registrar shall without undue delay publish in the Gazette the fact of such the addition or deletion and the reason therefor, together with the name and address of the person concerned.

The registrar shall, as soon as conveniently may be after the first day of January in every year, publish in the Gazette a list of the names, qualifications and addresses of all registered pharmacists.

Where the name of any person has been deleted from the register in pursuance of a direction under paragraph (ii) of subsection (1) of this section, the Board may, either of its own motion or on the application of that person, direct the registrar to restore the name to the register, either without fee or on the payment to the registrar of such fee as may be prescribed in the behalf, not exceeding the fee prescribed for registration in pursuance of section 9.

The Board shall establish an Enquiries and Disciplinary Committee which shall enquire into any matter arising under section 12 of this Act.

The Board may order a pharmacist or pharmaceutical technologist to reimburse costs and expenses incurred in connection with a disciplinary hearing and such costs shall be a civil debt recoverable summarily by the Board.

Where an act or omission which under subsection (1) of section 12 may be made the ground of a direction by the Board involving the cesser or restriction of the right of a person to have his name registered is an act or omission on the part of an employee of that person, the Board shall not give any such direction unless proof is given to its satisfaction of some one or more of the facts specified in the next subsection and the Board is of the opinion that, having regard to the facts so proved, the said person ought to be regarded as responsible for the act or omission.

A person aggrieved by a direction of the Board under section 12 of this Act or by the refusal of an application made under subsection (2) of that section may at any time within one month from the date on which notice of the direction or, as the case may be, of the refusal is given to him appeal to the Supreme Court against the direction or refusal, and the Board may appear as respondent in any such appeal.

The Supreme Court may on any such appeal make such order as it thinks fit in the matter and any order of the Supreme Court on any such appeal shall be final.

It shall be the duty of the registrar to make such alterations in the register as are necessary to give effect to any such order as aforesaid.

Every person whose name is deleted from the register for any reason shall forthwith surrender his certificate of registration to the Registrar for cancellation.

Any person refusing or failing to comply with the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction, to a fine not exceeding ten thousand shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.

Any person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding thirty thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both.

For the purpose of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section, the use of any of the words "pharmacist", "druggist", "chemist", "medical" or any similar word or combination of words in any language shall be deemed to be reasonably calculated to suggest that the owner of the business and the person having control of the business on the premises are registered pharmacists.

Nothing in this section shall extend to or interfere with the supply of medicine to a particular person by a medical practitioner or his assistant working under his immediate supervision, direction and control, a qualified dentist or a qualified veterinary surgeon, for the purpose of legitimate medical treatment, dental treatment or veterinary treatment, as the case may be.

Nothing in this section shall be deemed to make it unlawful for any person to sell any non-poisonous drugs provided that such drug is sold in its original condition as received by the seller or to require such person to be registered as a pharmacist.

It shall not be lawful for any person to carry on the business of a pharmacist unless the name and certificate of registration of the person having control of the business are conspicuously exhibited in the premises in which the business is carried on.

No person shall carry on the business of a pharmaceutical technologist unless the name and certificate of enrolment of the person having control of the business are conspicuously exhibited in the premises in which the business is carried on.

No person shall operate the business of a pharmacist or pharmaceutical technologist without the presence of a registered pharmacist or enrolled pharmaceutical technologist in the premises where such business is being carried out.

Any person contravening the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding one million shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.

Any emblem, description or title which may be used by a registered pharmacist, may be used by a body corporate lawfully carrying on the business of the pharmacist.

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this Part, if a registered pharmacist dies, or becomes of unsound mind or is adjudged bankrupt or enters into an arrangement with his creditors, his representatives may, with the permission of the Board and subject to such directions and conditions as the Board may deem fit to impose, carry on the business, and it shall not be necessary for such representatives to be registered provided that such business is continued only under the personal management and control of a registered pharmacist and for such period not exceeding five years as the Board may decide, and that the provisions of subsection (1) of section 20 of this Act are complied with.

Any title, emblem or description which may lawfully have been used by the registered pharmacist may continue to be used by his representatives as long as they are authorized by the Board to carry on the business.

For the purposes of this section an arrangement with creditors means a composition or scheme made in pursuance of the law for the time being in force relating to bankruptcy and includes a deed of arrangement to which the Deeds of Arrangement Act (Cap. 54) applies.

It shall not be lawful for any person to carry on the business of a pharmacist except in premises registered in accordance with this section.

No person shall carry on the business of a pharmaceutical technologist except in premises registered in accordance with this section.

Application for registration of premises shall be made to the Board in the prescribed form, and shall be accompanied by such fee, not exceeding one hundred shillings, in respect of the registration of any set of premises, as may be prescribed.

The registration of any premises under this section shall become void upon the expiration of thirty days from the date of any change in the ownership of the business carried on therein.

The Board may, for good and sufficient reason to be stated in writing, refuse to register or may cause to be deleted from the register any premises which in the Board’s opinion are or have become unsuitable for the carrying on therein of the business of a pharmacist.

It shall be the duty of the registrar to keep a register in the form prescribed of all premises registered under the provisions of this section.

Any person contravening the provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to a fine not exceeding one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both such fine and imprisonment.

Any premises having been deleted from the register of premises by the Board or any premises which in the Board's opinion have become unsuitable for the carrying on of the business of a pharmacist or pharmaceutical technologist shall be closed.

The Board shall give the person in charge of the premises at least fourteen days' notice of the intended closure under subsection (1) and the reasons thereof in writing.

If at the expiry of the period under subsection (2), the Board is not satisfied that the improvements required have been made, an authorized officer shall order closure of the premises

The Board shall prepare and submit to the Cabinet Secretary for his approval a list of the substances which are to be treated as poisons for the purposes of this Act.

In determining the distribution of poisons as between Part I and Part II of the list, regard shall be had to the desirability of restricting Part II to articles which are in common use, or likely to come into common use, which it is reasonably necessary to include therein if the public are to have adequate facilities for obtaining them.

The Cabinet Secretary may, by order, confirm the list with or without modification, and may, after consultation with or on the recommendation of the Board, from time to time by order amend or vary the list as he thinks proper.

The said list as in force for the time being is in this Act referred to as the Poisons List, and for the purposes of this Act the expressions "Part I Poison" and "Part II Poison" mean any of the poisons listed in Part I and Part II respectively of the Poisons List.

A pharmaceutical product shall not be used for clinical trial unless an approval is granted by the Board with the approval of the relevant ethics body.

Any person who intends to commence a clinical trial on a pharmaceutical product shall make an application to the Board in the prescribed form and the application shall be accompanied by the study protocol in the prescribed format and the prescribed fee.

The study protocol submitted under subsection (2) shall include a post- trial access program to ensure access of investigational medicinal substances by participants in a trial before grant of marketing authorization by the Board.

The Board shall prescribe guidelines for evaluation of applications made under subsection (2) to be implemented for accelerated evaluations during emergency situations, epidemics and outbreaks.

A person granted an approval under section 25A (1) shall put up a robust quality assurance system to ensure that the clinical trial is carried out so as to ensure the integrity of data generated, the safety and well-being of study participants.

The Board shall carry out inspections of the clinical trials so as to ensure compliance of the clinical trials with the prescribed requirements.

Any person who is in possession of a Part I poison otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction be liable to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both such fine and imprisonment.

If the Board is satisfied that it is in the public interest that a licence to deal as a wholesale dealer in poisons should be issued or renewed it may, on application being made to the Board in writing on such form as may be prescribed, and on payment of the prescribed fee, issue to the applicant a licence in the form prescribed, or, as the case may be, renew such licence.

The Board may refuse to issue or renew, or may revoke, a licence under this section, for any good and sufficient reason relating either to the applicant or licensee, or to the premises in which the business is, or is proposed to be, carried on, and an appeal shall lie from such refusal or revocation to the Cabinet Secretary, whose decision thereon shall be final.

A separate licence under this section shall be required in respect of each set of premises in which the business of the licensee is carried on.

No licence shall be issued or renewed under this section unless the person applying for or holding such licence is or has a registered pharmacist in control of the distribution of the poisons and the registered pharmacist is resident in Kenya.

Every licence issued under this section shall expire on the 31st day of December in the year of issue, subject to renewal.

The Registrar shall keep a register of all licences issued by the Board under this section.

It shall be an offence to deal as a wholesale dealer in poisons without a licence granted by the Board under subsection (1).

A person carrying on a regular business in mining, agricultural or horticultural accessories may apply to the Board in writing on the prescribed form for a licence to deal in poisons and any such licence, if granted, shall authorize the licensee to sell only the poisons specified therein, to persons who require them for a trade or business of mining, agriculture or horticulture.

A separate licence under this section shall be required in respect of each set of premises in which the business of the licensee is carried on.

If the Board is satisfied that it is in the public interest that a licence under this section should be issued or renewed it may, upon payment of the prescribed fee, issue to the applicant a licence in the prescribed form, or, as the case may be, renew such licence:

Provided that the Board may refuse to issue or renew, or may revoke, a licence for any good and sufficient reason relating either to the applicant or licensee or to the premises in which the business is, or is proposed to be, carried on, and in case of such refusal or revocation an appeal shall lie to the Cabinet Secretary, whose decision thereon shall be final.

The Board may refuse to issue or renew, or may revoke, a licence for any good and sufficient reason relating either to the applicant or licensee or to the premises in which the business is, or is proposed to be, carried on, and in case of refusal or revocation an appeal shall lie to the Cabinet Secretary, whose decision thereon shall be final.

Every licence under this section shall expire on the 31st December in the year of issue, subject to renewal.

The Registrar shall keep a register of all licences issued by the Board under this section.

A person who sells poisons for the purposes specified in subsection (1) contrary to any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding twenty thousand shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, a person licensed under section 28 to sell poisons for mining, agricultural or horticultural purposes may sell Part I poisons in accordance with such licence.

Nothing in this section shall make it illegal for a person to sell or resell to a wholesale dealer licensed under section 27, or to an authorized seller of poisons, stocks of Part I poisons which are found to be surplus to requirements, or for a person whose licence has been revoked or has expired to sell the poisons in his possession at the time of revocation or expiry, if the sale takes place within one year after the time of revocation or expiry or such longer time as the Board may allow.

A person who sells a Part I poison except in accordance with the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years or to both.

Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both such fine and imprisonment.

An authorized seller of poisons may supply a Part I poison prescribed and dispensed by himself, and in every case in which he supplies a Part I poison on prescription (whether the prescription has been drawn up by himself or not) shall enter the particulars in his Prescription Book in accordance with this section, but shall not in respect of such supply be required to make any entry in the Poisons Book in accordance with section 30 of this Act.

Any person to whom subsection (1) of this section apply who supplies or dispenses any Part I poison otherwise than in compliance with these provisions shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding five thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

Every person who, not being otherwise empowered so to do, desires to sell Part II poisons may make application for a licence in writing in the manner prescribed to the Board or a person appointed by it in writing for the purpose.

If the Board or the person appointed by it is satisfied that it is necessary for a licence under this section to be issued or renewed in order that the public may have adequate facilities for obtaining Part II poisons and that the applicant is a fit and proper person to sell the poisons, and that the premises in which this business is to be carried on are suitable, he may, on payment of the fee prescribed, issue or renew the licence.

A licence granted under this section may be made subject to such conditions and limitations as the Board or the person appointed by it may think fit to impose.

Every licence granted under this section shall be in the prescribed form and shall expire on the 31st December of the year in which it is granted.

The Board or the person appointed by it may refuse to issue or renew a licence, or may revoke the licence of any person who in his opinion is for a reason relating either to the person or his premises not fit to be so licensed, and in the event of refusal or revocation an appeal shall lie to the Cabinet Secretary, whose decision shall be final.

The Registrar shall keep a register in the prescribed form of all licences issued under this section.

Nothing in subsection (1) shall make it illegal for a person to sell or resell to a wholesale dealer licensed under section 27, or to an authorised seller of poisons, stocks of Part II poisons which are found to be surplus to requirements, or for a person whose licence has been revoked or has expired to sell the poisons in his possession at the time of revocation or expiry, if the sale takes place within three months after the time of revocation or expiry or such longer time as the Board may allow.

A person who sell a Part II poison except in accordance with the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding twenty thousand shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.

The provisions of paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subsection (1) shall not apply in respect of a poison made up and supplied for the use of a particular person being a poison prescribed by reference to the needs of that person.

Any person who commits an offence under this section shall be liable to a fine not exceeding twenty thousand shillings, or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year or to both.

No person shall manufacture any medicinal substance unless he has been granted a manufacturing licence by the Board.

Each manufacturing licence shall expire on the 31st December of every year and the renewal thereof shall be subject to compliance with conditions prescribed by the Board.

No person shall manufacture any medicinal substance for sale unless he has applied for and obtained a licence from the Board in respect of each substance intended to be manufactured.

Any person who intends to manufacture a medicinal substance shall make an application in the prescribed form for the licensing of the premises; and the application shall be accompanied by the prescribed fee.

The Board or any person authorized in writing by the Board shall have power to enter and sample any medicinal substance under production in any manufacturing premises and certify that the method of manufacture approved by the Board is being followed.

There shall be a Board of Management for the Laboratory, which shall consist of nine members to be appointed by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board.

A member of the Board of Management appointed under subsection (1) shall hold office for three years but shall be eligible for re-appointment.

A quorum of the Board of Management shall be five members.

The Board of management shall meet not less than four times each calendar year.

The Director shall be the secretary of the Board of Management.

Subject to this subsection, the Board of Management may regulate its own procedure.

The Board of Management shall appoint a Director who shall be the chief executive of the Laboratory responsible to the Board of Management for the day to day management of the Laboratory.

The Director shall hold office on such terms and conditions of service as may be specified in the instrument of his appointment.

The funds to be used for the management of the Laboratory shall consist of all moneys received or recovered under this Part and moneys provided by Parliament.

The Laboratory may accept gifts, donations, subscriptions, fees and other moneys for the implementation of approved programmes.

The financial year of the Laboratory shall be the same as the Government financial year.

The Board of Management shall cause to be kept and the Director shall keep all proper books of accounts of the Laboratory.

The accounts of the Laboratory shall be audited by the Auditor-General (Corporations).

The disposal of fixed assets by the Board of Management shall be subject to the approval of the Treasury.

A certificate of analysis shall be issued and signed by the Director for every analysis done.

The certificate of analysis issued under subsection (1) shall be in the prescribed form.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, no person shall advertise any drug or poison except with the written permission of the Board.

Applications for the advertisement of any drug or poison shall be made to the Board in the prescribed form and shall be accompanied by the prescribed fee.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, no person shall take part in the publication of an advertisement referring to a drug, appliance or article of any description in terms which are calculated to imply that such drugs, appliances or articles may be effective for any of the purposes specified in the Schedule to this Act.

The Cabinet Secretary may from time to time, by notice in the Gazette, amend or vary the Schedule to this Act.

Deleted by Act No. 5 of 2019, Sch.

In any proceedings for contravention of any of the provisions of section 41 of this Act a document purporting to be a certificate signed by a public analyst within the meaning of the Food and Drugs (Adulteration) Act (Cap. 127) or by an officer authorized in writing by the Cabinet Secretary to perform such analysis, and stating the result of an analysis made by him, shall be admissible as evidence of the matters stated therein, but any party to the proceedings may require the person by whom the analysis was made to be called as a witness.

The Cabinet Secretary, on the recommendation of the Board, may, by order, prohibit or control the manufacture, sale, advertisement or possession of any secret, patent, proprietary or homoeopathic medicine, preparation or appliance.

Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any order made by the Cabinet Secretary under subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence.

The power to make rules under this section with respect to poisons or drugs includes the power to make rules with respect to any class of poisons or drugs or any particular poison or drug.

All rules made under this section shall be laid before the Legislative Council as soon as may be after they are made, and if a resolution is passed within the next twenty days on which the Council sits after any such rule is laid before it that the regulation be annulled, it shall thenceforth be void, but without prejudice to the validity of anything done thereunder or to the making of any new rule.

If a magistrate is satisfied by information on oath that there is reasonable ground for suspecting that an offence against any of the provisions of this Act has been or is being or is about to be committed and that evidence of the commission of the offence is to be found on or in any premises, vehicle or vessel specified in the information, he may grant a search warrant authorizing any police officer to enter and search any such premises or to detain, enter and search any such vehicle or vessel, and to seize any drugs, articles or documents which the officer has reasonable cause for believing to be evidence of the commission of the offence.

An authorized officer, if he has reasonable cause to believe that an offence against any of the provisions of this Act is being or has been committed on or in any premises, vehicle or vessel, or that any drug, article or document in respect of which there is reasonable ground for suspecting that such offence has been or is being committed is on or in any premises, vehicle or vessel, and if the delay which would occur in obtaining a search warrant as hereinbefore provided would, or would tend to, defeat the purposes of this Act, may without such warrant enter and search any such premises or may detain, enter and search any such vehicle or vessel, and may seize any drugs, articles and documents which he has reasonable cause to believe to be evidence of the commission of any such offence.

Where any drug, article or document has been seized under the provisions of this section the person who has seized it shall forthwith report to a magistrate the fact of such seizure.

Any drug, article or document seized under the provisions of section 45 of this Act may be retained for a period not exceeding one month or if within that period proceedings are commenced for an offence under this Act in respect of such drug, article or document, until the final determination of those proceedings.

Where a magistrate is satisfied that any such drug or article is of a perishable nature or that by reason of the fact that the market for any such drug or article is seasonal, or for any other reason, any delay in disposing of the drug or article would unduly prejudice the owner thereof, he may authorize the sale or other disposal of such drug or article.

Where proceedings are taken for any offence against this Act the court by or before which the alleged offender is tried may make such order as to the forfeiture or other disposal of any drug or article in respect of which such offence was committed as the court shall see fit.

In this section references to a drug or article shall be construed as including the proceeds of any sale effected in accordance with the provisions of subsection (2) hereof.

The Board may retain or confiscate a medicinal substance that it has reasons to believe is a counterfeit or is illegally imported and the substance, if found to be counterfeit or illegally imported shall be disposed at the expense of the owner or importer of such substance.

Every authorized or licensed seller of poisons shall, on the demand of an authorized officer, produce for inspection his certificate of registration or his licence, as the case may be.

All books kept by any seller of poisons, medical practitioner, dentist or veterinary surgeon, or by any hospital, dispensary or similar institution, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, shall be open for inspection by an authorized officer at all reasonable times.

An act which if done by an individual would be an offence against this Act or any rules made thereunder shall, if done by a body corporate, be an offence by every director, secretary and manager thereof unless he proves that the offence was committed without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of the offence as he ought to have exercised having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all the circumstances.

If an offence against this Act or any rules thereunder has been committed by a partner in a firm, every person who at the time of the commission of the offence was a partner in that firm, or was purporting to act in that capacity, shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence unless he proves that the offence was committed without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of the offence as he ought to have exercised having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all the circumstances.

Any body corporate may appeal to the Cabinet Secretary against a direction given under this section, and the decision of the Cabinet Secretary on any such appeal shall be final.