Section 51: Interpretation.

(1)
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-
"capacity measurement" means measurement in terms of a unit of measurement included in Part IV of the First Schedule to this Act;
[First Schedule.]
"container" includes any form of packaging of goods for sale as a single item, whether by way of wholly or partly enclosing the goods or by way of attaching the goods to, or winding the goods round, some other article, and in particular includes a wrapper or confining band;
"food" includes drink, chewing gum or special products of a like nature and use, and articles or substances used as ingredients in the preparation of food or drink or of such products, but does not include-
(a) water, live animals or birds;
(b) fodder or feeding stuff for animals, birds or fish; or
(c) articles or substances used only as drugs, or medicine for internal or external use;
"measuring instrument" includes any instrument for the measurement of length, capacity, area or volume;
''Minister'' means the Minister charged with responsibility for trade;
"occupier" in relation to any stall, vehicle, ship or aircraft or in relation to the use of any place for any purpose, means the person for the time being in charge of the stall, vehicle, ship or aircraft or, as the case may be, the person for the time being using that place for that purpose;
''premises'' includes any place and any stall, vehicle, ship or aircraft;
"prescribed" means prescribed by this Act or regulations made thereunder.
"ship" includes any boat and any other description of vessel used in navigation;
"stamp" means a mark for use as evidence of the passing of weighing or measuring equipment as fit for use for trade, whether applied by impressing, casting, engraving, etching, branding, or otherwise howsoever, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;
"State" means any State created under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999;
"superintendent" means the superintendent of weights and measures appointed under this Act;
"transitional period" means any period before an order of revocation by the Minister under the provisions of section 52 (2) of this Act;
"weighing and measuring equipment" means equipment for measuring in terms of length, area, volume, capacity, weight or number whether or not the equipment is constructed to give an indication of the measurement made or other information determined by reference to that measurement;
"weighing instrument" includes scales with the poises applied thereto, scale-beams, balances, spring balances, steelyards, platform machines, weighbridges, counter scales, automatic scales, self-indicating and semi self-indicating scales, person weighing machines and other instruments for weighing, including instruments constructed also to calculate and indicate the price in money.
(2)
The expression, "use for trade" means use in any State in connection with, or with a view to, a transaction for-
(a) the transferring or rendering of money or money's worth in consideration of money or money's worth; or
(b) the making of a payment in respect of any toll or duty, where-
(i) the transaction is by reference to quantity in terms of measurement of length, area, volume, capacity or weight or in terms of number, or is a transaction for the purposes of which there is made or implied a statement of the quantity in such terms of goods to which the transaction relates; and
(ii) the use is for the purpose of the determination of statement of that quantity,
but, except where the transaction is a retail transaction for the making of a payment in respect of a toll or duty leviable in Nigeria or in respect of carriage within or from Nigeria, does not include any case where the goods in respect of which the determination or statement of quantity is made are goods required for despatch to a destination outside Nigeria.
(3)
The expression "pre-packed" means made up in advance ready for retail sale in or on a container; and on any premises where articles of any description are so made up, or are kept or stored for sale after being so made up, any article of that description found made up in or on a container shall be deemed to be pre-packed unless the contrary is proved; and it shall not be sufficient proof of the contrary to show that the container has not been marked in accordance with the requirements of this Act or any instrument made thereunder with respect to the pre-packing of such articles.
(4) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this Act to any person, other than a reference to an inspector, shall be construed as a reference to that person or some other person acting on his behalf in the matter in question.
(5) A statement as to the weight or measure of a pre-packed article shall, unless otherwise specified thereon, be deemed to be a statement of the net weight or measure of such article.