The Niger State Government has initiated legal action in the Supreme Court against the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice for being left out of the 13 percent derivation gains allocated to producing states.
The state’s attorney, Mohammed Ndarani (SAN), in the case filed in the supreme court cited the interpretation and application of Sections 232(1) & (2) and 162(2) of the 1999 Constitution. The case is against the on-going exclusion of Niger State from the derivation formula, as provided in the Allocation of Revenue (Federation Account, etc.) Act, 2004.
Ndarani argued that Niger State is a resource-state due to the fact that it hosts four major hydroelectric power dams i.e. Kainji, Jebba, Shiroro, and Zungeru all located within the state. The dams, according to him, have been the center of the national grid since 1968 powering not only a number of states in Nigeria but also powering the neighboring countries of Benin, Togo, and Niger Republic.
The state contends that it has been unjustly excluded from the roll call of the states that enjoy benefits from the 13 percent derivation, although the economic and infrastructural impacts of having such power installations have been felt in the state. The suit further refers to the inability of the federal government to remit fiscal revenue accruing from hydroelectric power generated in the state to it.
Ndarani also contended that huge areas of cultivable land in Niger State have been submerged or rendered useless as a result of dam construction, driving people out of communities and denying most residents who are mainly subsistence farmers their means of livelihood.
He insisted that the Attorney-General is the right defendant since he offers legal direction to the Accountant-General, Auditor-General, and the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission the main bodies for administering and distributing the federal revenue.
For him, the Attorney-General is derelict in duty in the exercise of his constitutional duty to ensure equal sharing of resources and fairness in the name of the state, despite the contribution of Niger State to Nigeria’s power generation capacity.
The state is urging the Supreme Court to hold that it qualifies for allocation under the 13 percent derivation and order the federal government to begin remittance of its entitlement from the proceeds of hydroelectricity power generated from its jurisdiction.
