A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the service of processes on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and two others in relation to a suit seeking among others, to halt the commission’s preparation for future elections.
Justice Ibrahim Auta, who turned down an ex-parte application by the plaintiff, ordered service on defendants in the suit, to enable them respond to issues raised.
The suit instituted by a firm, Bedding Holdings Limited (BHL) has INEC, its Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as defendants.
The plaintiff contends among others, that the defendants cannot, without complying with the court’s earlier judgment of January 28, 2014 utilise its patented process of applying the Direct Data Capturing (DDC) machines for voters’ registration for INEC’s continues voters’ registration exercise preparatory to the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states and the 2015 general elections.
The court had, in the judgment of January 28 held among others, the BHL possesses a valid and subsisting patent right over the process of using DDC machines for voters’ registration; awarded N17.3billion in damages against INEC, Jega and others for right infringement and ordered that subsequent application of the process must be with the firm’s consent.
BHL further contends that INEC and others have not only declined to comply with the judgment, they have commenced the deployment of its patented process for voter’s registration as part of preparation for the governorship elections in Ekiti, Osun and next year’s general elections.
It wants the court to determine among others, whether, by the combined interpretation of the provisions of sections 2, 3(3), 19,25 and 26 of the Patent and Design Act 2004 and the subsisting judgment of January 28, 2014 the defendants could employ its patented process for its continuous voters’ registration exercise without the plaintiff’s prior consent.
The plaintiff seeks an order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants and their agents from further infringing on its patent rights by embarking on the voter’s registration or production of voters’ register in preparation for future elections without first obtaining its consent.
It also seeks an order nullifying the voters’ register produced by the defendants, using its patented process, without its consent.
BHL wants the court to declare that the continuous voters’ registration exercise being carried out by INEC in preparation for future elections, without its (plaintiff’s) prior consent amounts to an infringement on its patent rights.
It also wants the court to declare that by virtue of the provisions of sections 2, 3(3), 19, 25 and 26 of the Patent and Design Act and the January 28 judgment, the defendants cannot use the plaintiff’s patented process for its voters’ registration exercise.
In a supporting affidavit, BHL’s Chief Executive Officer, Sylvester Odigie stated that this was not the first time INEC and its Chairman would violate the court’s judgment. He cited the continuous unauthorized usage of his company’s patented collapsible and transparent ballot boxes by INEC and Jega despite a subsisting judgment given on May 28, 2013 by Justice Adamu Bello, upholding BHL’s patent rights over the ballot boxes.
Odigie urged the court to grant the reliefs sought by the plaintiff because if left unrestrained, the alleged continuous disobedience of court judgments by the defendants was capable of lowering the dignity of the court and endangering the nation’s electoral process.
Hearing in the suit has been fixed for April 30.
