Danu and Jimu communities in Wushishi Local Government Area of Niger State have sued the Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC), Federal Ministry of Justice and its power counterpart before the Niger State High Court 4, over alleged unpaid compensation.
The communities are demanding N2 billion in compensation from the commission and the federal government for the construction of the dam in their area.
The Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC) is the first defendant in the suit while the Federal Ministry of Justice and Federal Ministry of Power are the second and third respondent respectively.
The counsel to the communities, Barrister Kabiru Bala Ibrahim of the Summit Chambers told the court that the two communities with about 3,000 residents were directly affected by the construction of Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Dam but were excluded from compensation.
FG approves N5.1bn for 185 researches
CITN, ANAN ask FG to explore natural gas to fund budget, boost revenue
He said the dynamite and vibration of machines used for construction had caused damages to some residential houses in the two communities because of their closeness to the dam, arguing that even if the two communities were not initially captured for compensation, they needed to be considered going by damages done to their houses and farmlands.
The lawyer alleged that some communities that were captured for compensation were far away from the dam site, leaving the direct victims from benefitting.
Ruling on the application, Justice Mohammed Mohammed adjourned the matter till February 8, 2024 for continuation.
