Hearing yesterday, was stalled in a N130billion civil suit instituted by the Federal Government to stop both the British American Tobacco Company (BATCO) and Philip Morris International from marketing, promoting, distributing, and selling of tobacco related products to minors and under-aged persons in the country.

The Federal high court sitting in Abuja which has already assumed jurisdiction on the matter said there was no way it could go on with the case following complaint by Philip Morris that it was yet to be served court processes in the case.

Although the suit was filed since last year, no progress could be made on its trial owing to the inability of the Federal Government to serve court processes on all the parties on court's record.

The Federal Government which said that it was eager to kick-start hearing in the case alleged that the defendants in the case including Philips Morris were evading service.

Vanguard recalls that Justice Adamu Umar of the Federal high court sitting in Abuja had ordered that service be effected on Philip Morris which is the 5th defendant in the case through a substituted means.

The court had specifically ordered that the court processes be published in a national daily in Switzerland where Philip Morris is based.

But counsel to the government told the court yesterday that the Swiss government through a letter to the Ministry of Justice in Abuja protested the mode of service.

The counsel said: "This court granted an order to serve the 5th defendant in this case with the court processes by placing an advertisement in a national daily in Switzerland .

"Before this order could be carried out, we received a letter of protest from the Federal Ministry of Justice of complaint by the Swiss government about the mode of service.

"As a result of this complaint, we have brought a motion ex-parte for an order to serve the 5th defendant through their Embassy here in Nigeria .

"We ask for an order directing the Chief Registrar of this court to serve the processes to the Swiss Embassy through the Ministry of Justice.

Justice Umar granted the request and adjourned the case to January 19, 2009.

The Federal Government had approached the court for an order compelling the defendants in the suit to cease the marketing, promotion, distribution, and sale of tobacco related products to minors and under-aged persons.

They also asked for an order of mandatory injunction restraining the defendants from representing or portraying to minors or persons under the age of 18, any alluring or misleading image regarding tobacco related products, whether by direct depictions, pictorial, advertorials, images, words messages, sponsorship, branding and or through overt or covert and or subliminal means.

In the statement of claim filed in court, the Federal Government asked for the following declarations:

*A declaration of this honourable court that the tobacco related products are manufactured, marketed, promoted, distributed and sold by the defendants are additive.

*A declaration of this honourable court that the tobacco related products as manufactured, marketed, promoted, distributed, promoted and sold by the defendants are hazardous and injurious to the public health.

*A declaration of this honourable court that the defendants' conduct as specified herein in the complaint/statement of claim in relation to its misrepresentation and concealment of material facts and other such acts, are reprehensible.

Should the court consent to making the declarations, the government is also asking the court to issue an order compelling the tobacco firms to pay N134,625,042,162.739 as special damages occasioned by their conduct.