Rite Foods Asks Court to Convict NBC MD for Flouting Injunction

Wale Igbintade

Rite Foods Limited has asked a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos to convict the Managing Director, Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), Mr. Mathieu Seguin for alleged flagrant disobedience to an order issued by Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke.

The beverage company made this prayer in an application filed by its counsel, Muyiwa Ogungbenro at the resumed hearing on October 27.

Failure to obey the court order as directed by the judge implies that the party, who fails to obey it is in contempt of court, and this offence can be punishable with a fine or imprisonment.

At the hearing, Ogungbenro prayed the court to convict NBC’s managing director for failure to appear before the court, after months before the interim injunction was set aside by Justice Aneke
The counsel argued that since the case had been transferred to Allagoa’s court, there was a need for a hearing convicting NBC’s managing director on the premise that the alleged contemnor should have been punished before the contempt proceedings were set aside, taking into consideration the long period before the motion was discharged.

In its application for committal, Rite Foods through its counsel asked the court to commit the contemnors to purge themselves of the contempt of court.

According to the firm, NBC and its managing director are restrained from promoting or using any material for its Predator energy drink in a manner that infringes or passes off Rite Foods’ Fearless energy drinks.
However, counsel to the NBC, Oluseye Opasanya opposed the application of Rite Foods Limited, requesting the court to convict the managing director for alleged contempt of court.

Opasanya, therefore, asked the court for more time to respond to the claim by Rite Foods that the motion for conviction of the contemnor should be continued under Justice Ambrose Allagoa, as Aneke court heard his own case which set aside the interim injunction.

After listening to positions of the counsels, Allagoa fixed the hearing in a suit filed by Rite Foods Limited against Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) for November 15.