Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc has appealed against the judgment of a Federal High Court in Lagos which dismissed its suit against the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) and National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP).
Trial judge at the lower court, Justice Buba, in his judgment, held that the questions raised by StanbicIBTC regarding FRC were hypothetical and academic and he did not deal with them.
The court held that Section 7 of the NOTAP Act 1979 expresses important national public policy of Nigeria namely, to avoid the dumping of obsolete and inappropriate technology in Nigeria and to raise revenue for the Federal Government.
According to the court, an agreement that seeks to circumvent the registration requirement under the NOTAP Act would not be enforced by the courts.
StanbicIBTC in the appeal before the Court of Appeal, is contending that the lower court did not address the position where an agreement was submitted for registration and NOTAP fails or refuses to register or where an agreement is for a period of years and NOTAP gives approval to make payment in relation to some (but not all) of the years.
Meanwhile, the bank said that given that none of Stanbic IBTC’s agreements that are pending with NOTAP seeks to circumvent NOTAP Act, it was awaiting the full judgment to enable it to understand the decision regarding the meaning and application of Section 7 of the NOTAP Act 1979 and the implications of the decision.
The bank insisted that as a law-abiding corporation, it will continue to respect the rule of law and comply with extant Nigerian law.
-Vanguard