Building expert demands Sh3b from State for patent theft

Kenya: A building expert and an UN award winner wants a Nakuru High Court to order the Government to pay his construction firm royalties amounting to over Sh3 billion over alleged misuse of a patented building technology.

New Build Engineering Construction Chairman Architect John Damus Gachara told High Court Judge Hellen Omondi that the Ministry of Housing failed to honour a process of acquisition of a patented building technology he invented after researching for 20 years.

Gachara, World Habitat Day Award Winner for Best Practices of 2010, is accusing the Ministry of exposing his invention and releasing it to engineers without his consent.

He is also accusing the State of misusing his patented building technology as it was against the International Intellectual Property Rights. Gachara, in a witness statement filed at the court, said he registered his invention in 2002 at an 11 country member organisation – African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) – which has its headquarters in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Testifying before Lady Justice Omondi yesterday, Gachara told court that he trained over 20 ministry engineers during the demonstration on the technology.