A legal battle is looming between a consulting firm, Mega-Mix Consult Nigeria Ltd and the Kano State Ministry of Science and Technology on one hand and again between the firm and the National Research Institute of Chemical Technology (NRICT), Zaria, over an alleged breach of trust and theft of a business proposal.
Mega-Mix Consult is alleging that it got the verbal endorsement of Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso to train state indigenes in the production of footballs just as the governor also directed it to forward its proposal to the Commissioner of Science and Technology, Engr Garba Mohammed.
According to the consulting firm, surprisingly, the firm was sidelined by the commissioner.
The Chief Executive Officer of Mega-Mix Consult, Shuaibu-Gara Gombe told LEADERSHIP yesterday that as a result, the firm plans to sue the state ministry and NRICT who knew of the arrangement with Kano State and yet went ahead to sign an agreement with the state commissioner in that respect.
Gombe said, “In company of the Taiwanese ambassador, we met with Governor Kwankwaso who directed us to see the commissioner. We wrote a proposal in June 2011, met with him twice, met with his director of science and technology twice and also presented samples of the ball.”
Continuing, he noted, “Both parties agreed to modalities of operation and for three months, the ministry kept on saying that the governor had not given approval to the project. Unknown to us, the commissioner had other plans; and approached NRICT, negotiated and took a memo to the Kano State Executive Council, misled the governor and secured an approval.”
But responding, Mohammed told LEADERSHIP that he was not aware of the said proposal in which NRICT, Zaria, an agency under the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology was to? have given Mega-Mix Consult, the patent right for the production of the balls.
Mohammed who also said he was unmoved by threats from the firm to sue the ministry and NRICCT for N20 million, stated, “Let them go to court. Let them sue. We will meet in court. I am not aware of this proposal.”
The firm also alleged that it had been in discussions with NRICT for over a year to secure the patent right to the technology. Gombe said, “Mega-Mix Consult’s representatives visited Zaria more than six times and had five meetings in between. When Prof Idris Bugaje took over as DG of the agency, we concluded discussions.”
The Mega-Mix boss maintained, “We concluded discussions and a draft agreement was written and forwarded to the Minister of Science and Technology, Prof Ita Bassey Ewa and also to the National Office of Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) for review and approval.
“But NRICT deliberately delayed signing the agreement, claiming the minister wanted to be part of the signing ceremony but was not around. Through our discussion with NRICT, they knew Kano State was our main client but still went in our absence and without our consent and authority to negotiate with the state.”
The consultant on technology at the NRICT, Joe Ibrahim who was the only person from the institute that LEADERSHIP could reach, however said he was not in a position to make a statement on the issue.
“You may wish to speak with the director-general himself or someone from the public relations department. I am not in a position to speak for the institute,” Ibrahim said.
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