The Nation Newspaper

Tag: patent

  • ‘NOTAP working on patent’

    • GenesysIGNITE: startups share $30,000

    The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, has said the Federal Government, through the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), is addressing issues related to patent and intellectual property right. He said this would safeguard the investment and ideas of young people in the country.

    Onu,who spoke at the GenesysIGNITE start-ups convergence in Enugu organised by Genesys Tech Hub in collaboration with CFAtech.ng, said it was high time various research and development results were pulled off the shelves of the universities and turned to commercial products. “Any nation that produces science and technology experts is always the toast of the world. Genesys is doing what the government has in mind with regard to youth development – capacity building, incubation, providing venture capitals. I can tell you that the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology will support this platform to ensure that young people are given a space to express themselves and add value to the economy,” he said.

    He gave the cash prizes of $10,000 each to Tutor Finder, PlayJoor and House of Uwe.

    Also speaking at the event with over 2000 start-ups drawn from Enugu, Abia, Uyo, Imo, Anambra, Delta, Ebonyi and other neighbouring states in attendance,  former Senate President, Senator Ken Nnamani, said the future belongs to the digital economy and will become visible if the country strategises properly.

    Nnamani, who chaired the event, stressed the need for educational institutions, especially the universities to ‘feed’ the technology industry with skilled manpower and graduates fit for purpose. He lauded Genesys for the foresight in organising the event which he said, could igniting mind shift among the youths “from election ballot box snatching to technological evolution in the region”.

    “What Genesys is trying to ignite in the Southeast and Enugu State in particular is awesome, by opening the eyes of our young people to tech disruptions and opportunities. It is important, because our people are ingenious and if we can apply the ingenuity in the tech ecosystem we can compete with the Silicon Valley. It is high time we shifted our ingenuity from snatching ballot boxes during elections and channel the strengths towards technology.”

    Founder/CEO of Genesys Tech Hub, Kingsley Eze, said the main objective of the initiative was to discuss latest technology trends that impact the regions, and to proffer strategies for unearthing benefits in the various sectors of the economy. Through the event, he said, they are also promoting innovative business solutions and ideas, propagated in the form of start-ups, within the region, culminating in capacity building and other exigencies to help them thrive.

    Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata Jnr., founder, CFAtech.ng, who moderated the panel session, told the participants that this type of event had helped fuel tech revolution in other parts of the country. He said they owe themselves a duty to take advantage of the opportunities that will follow GenesysIGNITE 2017.

    On his part, Prof Umar Danbatta, executive vice chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), tied digital innovation and development to digital literacy, stating that government needs to move towards the “pull” strategy with emphasis in the development of appropriate legal framework, applications and local content.

    “Digital Access Programme (DAP) is being implemented by the regulator to equip secondary schools across the country with internet connectivity. More than 223 schools have benefited. Internet clouds are being provided within Nigeria’s university and polytechnics to foster improvement in digital literacy and application,” the EVC said through Mr. Tony Ojobo, director, Public Affairs at the Commission.

    GenesysIGNITE 2017 has laid a solid foundation for technology development in the south east and south south regions of the country.

     

  • Pharmacists Council insists on licensing patent medicine dealers

    •’We ‘re not against regulations but patent dealers’

    The Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) has insisted that the patent medicine dealers, also known as “chemists”, must come under its regulations. The Council said those without its licence would be treated as criminal.

    But the patent medicine dealers under the umbrella body of the Nigerian Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers (NAPPMED) said it was not against regulation; rather, that PCN’s scope of operation should be expanded to reflect their relevance.

    At its First National Summit, NAPPMED National President, Prince Joel Odoh, said what his members wanted from the government and its regulatory body is a dialogue on the expansion of work that the group should be allowed to do, “for instance, the current PCN regulation guiding the operations of NAPPMED does not allow members to treat certain diseases like diarrhoea. This is a big shortcoming that must be addressed”.

    Odoh said: “Some of the issues we are dealing with have to do with licensing. We don’t have to deceive ourselves- the license PCN is giving the patent dealers does not cover all our operations. That license does not cover treatment of diarrhoea and headache, even for those in the rural areas where serious medical care is urgently required, we can’t give First Aid. NAPPMED is not afraid of regulation but is averse to limiting of its operation, is inimical to its members’ existence.”

    Odoh called for a discussion with the regulatory body.

    He stressed that with over 950,000 members, the group should be given some recognition.

    “Our request is not out of place, we need to be recognised more than before as the first point of contact by patient especially in the rural areas of the country. Our members need to be encouraged to attend continuous educational trainings that will enhance their knowledge in drugs and patient handling.

    “In the area of finance, I plead with the Federal Government to deliberately structure financial assistance to us to enable us increase our purchasing capital which will also be beneficial to the less privileged among us, so we can serve Nigerians better, as we would now be able to take more stock.” he said.

  • INEC, patent and the judiciary

    RECENTLY, an Abuja Federal High Court held that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) infringed on the patent rights of Bedding Holdings Ltd (BHL) in the contract purchase of Direct Data Capture (DDC) machines in 2010. In his judgment, Justice Ibrahim Auta awarded N17.3 billion damages to the plaintiff – representing 50 per cent of the value of the contract. The genesis of the case was the contract awarded by INEC in 2010 to three firms (one indigenous and two foreign) for the supply of DDC machines for voter registration in the run up to the 2011 general elections. It was a contract award that drew much attention to itself, first for the shortness of time for the firms to execute it, and second, for the involvement of foreign companies in a job many argued would be effectively handled by indigenous firms. INEC in a sense heeded the call of some patriotic Nigerians by awarding a huge part of the contract to the only Nigerian firm among the three awardees. This gesture alone created instant jobs for hundreds of Nigerians and arrested capital flight. At the end, Nigerians were justified for canvassing for all the job to be given to competent indigenous firms. Proof of this was the verdict from INEC that only one company delivered the DDC machines within the stipulated time frame of about 35 days. That company (Zinox) was the only indigenous firm among the lot. This feat strengthened the position of local content advocates to canvass for a wider berth for local companies in the overall national quest for economic growth and sustainable development. Consequent upon the award and successful execution of this contract, Beddings Holding approached the court, claiming it is the rightful owner of the patent for DDC machines and allied process of data capturing. In delivering his judgment, Justice Auta said: “From the evidence before this court, it is clear that the plaintiff actually owned a subsisting patent right over the process, application and the use of DDC machines for voters’ registration”. He also said: “Section 6 of the nation’s Patent and Design Act preclude anybody from using a patented invention without the consent of the inventor. So, INEC should always play by the rule so that its conduct does not affect the outcome of elections.” It was on the basis of this that the judge awarded cost in favour of the plaintiff. While I do not begrudge the plaintiff for the judgment or the three companies for making billions of naira from the DDC machines contract, there is the overriding need to examine the nature of patents, the implications of the judgment, the behaviour of INEC and the role of the judiciary in the nation’s electoral process. A patent, according to Encarta dictionary, is an exclusive right officially granted by a government to an inventor to make or sell an invention. Patents are granted for inventions and an invention is a process or device created by someone or group. The very fact that it is called an invention worthy of patent suggests that such process or device is new, unique and has never before been achieved. In the instant case of DDC machines, it is hard to prove that any Nigerian, individual or body corporate, is the inventor. To infer such and to ascribe such status to oneself means that other DDC processes including the bungled national identity card project under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the direct data capture undertaken by the Nigerian Communications Commission and the telecoms companies in the country all infringed on the right of the patent owner. All of these projects bordered on the capturing of the biometric data of Nigerians in just the same way the INEC DDC machines did. Patent under any law, sovereignty or trade agreement including the World Trade Organisation (WTO) schedule is a very serious matter which must not be subjected to political, pecuniary or sentimental manipulations. Thomas Edison holds the patent for the electric bulb because he invented the electric bulb through well-defined process in a known and verifiable laboratory. He did not lay claim to the invention, he actually created a device. On that count, humanity says he deserves his patent. This is the context in which the judgment of Justice Auta is not only curious but strange. It is at best a mockery of reality and acceptable global tenets on matters of patents and patenting. But it raises a number of questions. Was the DDC machine used by INEC including the process of deploying such machine a Nigerian invention or the invention of any particular person or institution? What about the DDC machines used during the national identity card project or the ones used during the SIM Card registration by NCC and telecom companies in the country? The DDC machine comprises a laptop with camera, fingerprint capturing device (scanner) and printer. Besides, none of these devices can function without a software of its own and you need another software to tie them up together to function as a unit. I am a firm believer in the judiciary and a fervid advocate that people should resort to the judiciary to defend their rights. To that extent, the judgment of any court of competent jurisdiction should be binding on the parties involved. But the judiciary is not all about a High Court. The instant case requires further judicial inquisition and it is on this basis that a judgment of this nature need to be scrutinised by a higher assizes namely the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. It would be interesting to know in the final analysis what should earn a patent from the Nigeria patent office. Should one, for instance, be awarded patent for a product or service which he or she had no factory, laboratory or proven competence to create or just because such person was able to produce any document to support a claim? Nigerians need urgent answers to assuage their curiosity. •Musdafa writes from Abuja

  • ‘Cultists’ kill patent medicine dealer in Benue

    Ten gunmen, suspected to be members of a cult group, yesterday killed a 30-year-old patent store dealer in Makurdi, the Benue State capital.

    Police spokesman Daniel Ezeala, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), told The Nation that the suspected cultists stormed the patent medicine store on David Mark Bypass at 8pm.

    He said the gunmen shot into the air to scare away the residents and shot their target several times in the head before they abandoned him in his pool of blood.

    Ezeala expressed surprise that the Magistrate’s Court often granted bail to suspected cultists on murder charges.

    The police spokesman said the war against cultists would be defeated if they continued to enjoy easy bail after committing heinous crimes.