Court Orders Firms To Pay Yobe Amputee Girl N200m Damages

A high court judge sitting in Damaturu, Justice M. Lawu Lawan has awarded the sum of N200 million against a Nigeria Telecommunication Company, MTN and the Nigeria Electricity Management Company Ltd (NELMCO) in favour of a female teenager, Hamsatu Abdullahi, whose hands and leg were amputated as a result of electrocution.

An indigene of Chumbusku in Karasuwa local government area of Yobe State, the 14-year-old Hamsatu lost her two hands and a leg to an MTN facility connected to a national grid belonging to NELMCO (Pole stay wire) since when she was four.

In a suit filed by Hamsatu through her father Abdullahi Koki with reference No. YBS/D/HC2/001/2021 in Damaturu, the family prayed the court to aver them with adequate compensation over the electrocution caused by the defendant’s facilities sited close to the plaintiff’s house.

Justice M. Lawu Lawan while delivering his judgement said, “I hold that the plaintiff has duly established by oral and documentary credible and unchallenged evidence against the defendants. I equally hold that the plaintiff is entitled to claims from the defendants jointly and severally as compensating or general damages for the permanent disablement via the loss of her two hands, right leg, continuous pains, medical treatment, anguish, shock and continuous psychological trauma and loss of amenities of life caused by the defendants’ act and omissions.

“Therefore, the sum of two hundred million naira (N200,000,000) is hereby awarded against the defendants jointly and severally in favour of the plaintiff.

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The particular of heads of the damages is as follows: Loss of earnings, pains and suffering – N10,000,000, Loss of capacity for enjoyment of life – N10,000,000.00, Shortening of expectation of life – 10,000,000, Cost of keeping a servant to assist the plaintiff – N10,000,000.00, General damages – N150,000,000, Cost of action – N10,000,000.”

The counsel to the plaintiff Barrister Ahmed Igoche while commenting shortly after the judgement expressed happiness that Hamsatu was able to win the case.

Igoche said his client had protested the erection of the telecom mast close to his house by MTN but the company went ahead with the project and even linking it to the nation grid, which they established, belongs to NELMCO hence the connection between the two companies in the suit.