CLIFF ALOZIE-ERONDU
Piracy and counterfeit products, have contributed to high intellectual property theft’s
Fake and pirated products though a globe problem plaguing most developing countries, but it has become a cankerworm which Nigerian government needs to fight against if it must make headway in its drive for economic independence.
It is believed to be a strong factor that will hinder President Musa Yar’Adua’s 7-Point agenda and the country’s Vision 2020 if not properly addressed.
Counterfeit and pirated products as they are cut across virtually all areas of human consumer goods, including drug, food, books, electrical parts, compact disc, textile material and foot wears, among others. According to experts, it has not only become an instrument of mass destruction, but has ripped many the dividends of there intellectual property rights. Unfortunately, most of the world’s bogus drugs and pirated products originate from Asia, particularly China , according to the U.S. Centre for Medicine in the Public Interest. The fakes oftentimes are exported and they change hands many times before reaching their unwitting consumers. The growing trade has been fuelled by internet sales and the lure of lucrative profits, and with the increasing trend, fake products are expected to rise globally to $75 billion by 2010.
Citing example of the implication of fake drug in Nigeria , CNN’s Sanjay Gupta, said victims include Nneka and Chimezie Ononaku, a couple in Nigeria unwittingly poisoned their infant son recently after feeding him teething medicine that was contaminated and antifreeze. Counterfeit drugs he pointed out can be almost impossible to spot, but can contain inactive ingredients like talcum powder, or even toxic ingredients such as rat poison. Also, World Health Organisation in its report estimates that the prevalence of counterfeit pharmaceuticals ranges from less than one percent in developed countries to over 30 percent in developing countries, stressing that they have over 50 percent from illicit web sites.
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According to Dora Akunyili, the former director general of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), counterfeit drug is one of the greatest challenges Nigeria is facing. According to her, over 50 percent of drugs and food drinks sold in Ariaria Market in Aba , Onitsha Market, Alaba Market, among other markets across the country are counterfeit, stressing that many families have been wiped away due to after effect of this deadly medications and consumable goods. NAFDAC she said is winning the war, explaining that more still need to be done by government and individuals to eradicate this menace, because anybody can be a victim.
Apart from counterfeit drugs and food items, investigations from the US Federal Aviation Administration shows that two percent representing 520,000 of the 26 million airplane parts installed each year are fake, while piracy have resulted in the loss of 750,000 jobs in the United States of America. The increase in fake spare parts, the organisation says has contributed to high accident rate in the recent years.
Similarly, World Customs Organisation revealed that piracy and counterfeit products, have contributed to high intellectual property theft’s, stressing that the impact on the global economy accounts for $500 to $600 billion in lost sales each year, or 5-7 percent of world trade, while Federal Bureau of Investigations disclosed that counterfeit and piracy costs the US between $200 to 250 billion in lost sales.
According to the chairman, Longman Nigeria Plc, Emmanuel Ijewere, authors and producers in the entertainment industry have been impoverished in the last 20 years, as they lost over N81 billion to counterfeiting and piracy. He explained that Nigerians spent over N90 billion in purchasing books and pirated compact disc within the period, but regretted that only N8-billion went into the coffers of the producers. Authors Ijewere said are no longer encouraged to write, since they will end up making more money for counterfeiters and pirates, stressing that Nigeria will not make any headway unless the Nigerian Copyright Commission rises to the occasion. The chairman therefore called on the Nigeria Customs Service to ensure that anybody importing books, compact disc and other materials is registered with the Nigerian Copyright Commission, in order to reduce the number of pirated items coming into the country.
For Madu Chikwendu, who is a film maker, there are over 1,500 websites pirating Nigerian music, saying that the country has become a pirate haven. Due to increasing rate of piracy, artists in United States of America he said, have refused to do business with Nigerian entertainment industry, insisting that there must be a synergy between the Nigerian Copyright Commission and regulatory agency to fight this menace.
Speaking on why counterfeit and piracy are thriving in Nigerian, the Minister of Finance, Mansur Muhtar, said the Nigeria Customs Service obsolete law has failed to provide the legal framework and tools that makes the organisation a portent agency for the enforcement of Federal government trade and fiscal policies. He explained that the present day Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) is expected to provide a strong umbrella to protect and strengthen Nigerian talents, innovators and manufacturers to sprout, nurtured and become competitive. Muhtar regretted that counterfeit and piracy has continued to kill creativity, resourcefulness and competition, which is an abuse of intellectual property, stressing that amendment of the customs law would go a long way to checkmate this ugly trend in the country.
The director general of the Nigerian Copyright Commission, Adebambo Adewopo on his part, stated customs is facing challenges because of the CEMA, explaining Cap 45 of their law did not make provisions for the enforcement and prosecution anybody impounded with counterfeit and pirated materials. He pointed out that lack of knowledge and training of officers is posing problem of enforcement of intellectual property by the Nigeria Customs Service, expressing dissatisfaction that in the last 15 years, no customs officer has been trained by Nigerian Copyright Commission, as was the practice before. As for him, counterfeiting and piracy needed to be checkmated because of the dwindling oil revenue.Recounting the after effect of counterfeit to the Nigerian textile industry, the United Nation Industrial Organisation (UNIDO) representative in Nigeria, Sodhi Navdeep, said over 70,000 Nigerians working in the textile industries have lost their jobs since the year 2000, due to accelerated closure of many manufacturing firms, while the surviving ones are in the state of comatose. The Chinese according counterfeited products, specifically target and copy the trade marks of Nigerian textile manufacturers and brand their product Made in Nigeria or Made as Nigeria’ on the selvedge and even blatantly fake Standard Organisation of Nigeria or Nigerian Industrial Standard markings to deliberately mislead consumers. Presently, he said fake Chinese products occupy 80 percent of market share in Nigeria .
Navdeep explained that the remaining 24,000 workers of the existing textile industry are in the intensive care unit, stressing that greater awareness should be created among the stakeholders about its damaging effect on the economy, as well as the urgent need to check trade practices. Navdeep suggested that the Federal Government should engage the Chinese authorities by drawing their attention to the serious damage caused by the trade malpractices of their textile exporters to the Nigerian economy.
The ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Nigeria , Xu Jianguo, however said that the country’s local governments in April every year destroy fake and pirated materials, stressing that they destroyed goods worth 135 million Reminbi in three years.
According to him, Chinese government is in support of the efforts of the government to protect its industries, but regretting that most fake textile, counterfeit materials and pirated CDs and books are still in Nigerian markets.
In order to upgrade the quality of Chinese products exported to Nigeria , the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of China and the Standard Organisation of Nigeria, have made in-depth negotiations on product quality and would sign agreement on the upcoming 5th Session of their joint trade in June 2009.
Sola Dosunmu, head, Commercial and Intellectual Property, British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN), speaking on the way forward, he said Nigerian government should identify and litigate against all infringers of its intellectual property in order to send out a clear message that Nigeria is not a conducive environment for illicit trade. He called for effective administration of Standard Organisation of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programme (SONCAP) whereby imports are checked for compliance at the point of export before shipments are made to Nigeria .
Dosunmu advised that the Consumer protection Council should assist at the ports and Nigeria’s borders with neighbouring countries, to ensure that only imported consumer goods which are fit for Nigerian consumption are cleared. The legislature he said should ensure that national legislation protecting trademarks is also applicable to goods produced and shipped through the Free Trade Zones.
