Niger State drags FG to S’Court over 13% derivation

It accused the defendant of failing to properly advise the President, especially on how to ensure equitable distribution of resources in conformity with current realities, particularly with the enormous fiscal revenue generated by Niger State.

The plaintiff stressed that it is a purely agrarian state as its inhabitants are subsistence farmers whose produce are enjoyed across the state and beyond.

It contended that as a result of the large expanse of the land occupied by the dams, a large population of its citizens and residents are denied the opportunity of engaging in agricultural activities.

Niger state maintained that it has continued to host the dams that were established since 1968, decrying that despite its contributions in terms of revenue, it has been a victim of incessant and continuous flooding.

“This has resulted in wanton loss of human lives and livestock as well as destruction of properties, leading unavoidably to displacement of many residents from their homes,” it averred.

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More so, the plaintiff claimed that Physicochemical/Microbiological Impact Assessment Report it conducted showed a high level of degradation in the affected areas.

“This represents an impending danger that looms large in the horizon for the state over the coming years if urgent stringent environment protection measures are not taken.

“To the chagrin, detriment, continuous exploitation and utter impoverishment of the people of Niger State, the defendant continuously and continually whisked off profits from the state.

“The federal government should not be only concerned about benefiting from the dams located in the territory of the state without a care for its people,” the plaintiff added.

More so, the plaintiff said it was unfortunate that the office of the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, had no information on the volume of electricity by megawatts, generated by the dams since 1968 and 2019, except for those of 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

It said the NBS computation of the volume of electricity by megawatts generated into the national grid from 2020 – 2023, was: “The sum total megawatt generated in 2020 is equal to 2,232,706.27, 2021 equal to 2,632,348.00, 2022 equal to 2,830,002.96 and in 2023 equal to 2,658,612.96.”

“These dams have generated fiscal revenue which has been controlled by the federal government and have been indisputably redistributed equally amongst the constituent states without considering the host (Niger State) since 1968 till date,” Ndarani, SAN, added.

He said the plaintiff, its citizens and residents suffered continuous exploitation, neglect and ravaging flood due to the power generating activities of FG and its agencies.

Consequently, the plaintiff prayed the apex court to intervene and order its inclusion in the 13 percent derivation.