France, Jan. 3 -- Some 1,300 kilograms of expired raw materials have been discovered at a Softcare factory, a subsidiary of a Chinese group specialising in the manufacture of baby nappies and sanitary towels.

On 8 December the Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (ARP) ordered the withdrawal from the market of the brand's products, but reversed its decision a week later, stating that no expired materials had been used in the manufacture of the nappies. 'Who is telling the truth?'

The ARP's contradictory reports, coupled with accusations of attempts to bribe the agency's inspectors, have fuelled doubts in Senegal. The opposition party FRAPP (Front for a Popular and Pan-African Anti-Imperialist Revolution) is calling for clarification.

"Who ...