A Federal High Court in Lagos has restrained
MasterCard and its agents from further issuing the National Identity Card on
behalf of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the federal
government agency responsible for registration and issuance of national
identity cards.
Justice R.M. Aikawa gave the order following an
exparte motion filed by Chams Plc and Chams Consortium Limited (CCL) on August
28, 2019.
The exparte which also included an Anton Pillar
order was issued on November 7, 2019.
In their statement of claim, they are also asking
Mastercard to pay the sum of N114 billion for damages.
Other defendants in the case include the President
and Chief Executive of Mastercard International, Ajay Banga; Country
Representative of Mastercard in Nigeria, Omokehinde Ojomuyide; a staff of
Mastercard, Daniel Monehin; NIMC and 22 commercial banks as respondents.
The order of the court stated inter alia: “An order
of interim injunction restraining the defendants, whether acting by themselves
or by their directors, officers, servants, agents, technical managers or
otherwise, however, from further manufacturing, producing, designing and or
printing or authorising the manufacturing, production, designing and or
printing of any National Identity Card with MasterCard logo as described in
paragraph 16 of the supporting affidavit in Exhibit CC9 pending the
determination of the motion on notice filed for hearing.”
Similar order was given to 22 respondent commercial
banks in Nigeria, restraining them from honouring or giving effect to any
transaction from Mastercard.
The Anton Pillar Order has empowered the
prosecuting Solicitor, Kemi Pinheiro (SAN) of Pinheiro LP; Inspector General of
Police (IG) or any senior police officer not below the rank of Assistant
Superintendent of Police (ASP) to search any of their premises, take into
possession and remove any document relating to the said affidavit.
They are also empowered to inspect, take pictures
or arrest any body found to be contravening the orders of the court.
A breakdown of the statement of claim shows that
N84 billion is for special damages as a result of loss of expected revenue for
eight years; N10 billion for the general damages of fraud perpetrated jointly
and severally against the claimants, while N20 billion for inducing the breach
and termination of the concessions awarded to the claimants by the third
defendant, which occurred as a result of the first and second defendants’
fraudulent actions.
The federal government had in 2006, invited Chams
to bid for the National ID project. Chams, in a statement, said it competed and
emerged the preferred bidder for the Nigeria National Identity Card (NIC)
concession.
The statement further said before and upon the
execution of a concession agreement with the NIMC, Chams Plc pursued the
implementation of the NIC concession by incorporating Chams Consortium Limited
(CCL), a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) with the sole purpose of implementing
the NIC concession. Chams Plc also invited MasterCard to work with the Chams
Consortium as one of its technical partners on the NIC concession.
“Surprisingly and to the disappointment of Chams
and other stakeholders, MasterCard went on to collude with others using
technical information and design shared with them by Chams to frustrate the
concession won by Chams and more than $100 million which Chams/CCL invested in
the project,” the statement said.
In an open letter published earlier in the year to
the president, Chams Plc and CCL asked MasterCard to accept wrong doing,
apologise for the breach of contract and pay compensation to CCL and Chams Plc
for their more than $100 million investment and accumulated losses.
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