In a resounding verdict, the ECOWAS Court dismissed the claims filed by two NGOs—one Nigerian and one Swiss—alleging that Nigeria’s failure to construct a mitigating dam in Adamawa led to the catastrophic Lagdo Dam floods of 2012 and 2022. According to NAN, the suit (ECW/CCJ/APP25/23) contended that the delay in erecting the dam resulted in widespread devastation, including loss of life, mass displacement, and significant disruption across 14 states, while also squandering opportunities for irrigation and power generation.
However, in a sweeping judgment delivered on Friday by Justice Sengu Koroma, the court ruled that the Swiss-registered NGO lacked the legal standing to litigate, and the Nigerian counterpart, despite its claims of representing public interest, failed to delineate a specific class of victims. The court stressed that, for public interest litigation, the affected group must be clearly identifiable—something the applicants could not demonstrate.
Nigeria, staunchly denying the allegations, argued that its 1982 feasibility study for the dam was part of a broader strategy to harness the Benue Basin’s water resources, and that existing measures—including additional dams and a 2024 Senate resolution for dredging the Benue and Niger Rivers—were already in place to mitigate flooding. The government further maintained that its MoU with Cameroon was solely focused on enhancing bilateral water resource management.
The three-judge panel, comprising Justices Sengu Koroma, Dupe Atoki, and Edward Asante, concluded that the applicants’ inability to meet the public interest litigation criteria rendered the suit unsustainable, thereby decisively dismissing the case.
