Young lawyers in Nigeria have been urged to embrace Public Interest Litigation to step up the fight for accountability and transparency in government.
Public Interest Litigations (PIL) is the use of the legal system to promote causes and rights of public importance, such as environmental protection, human rights and social justice, often on behalf of groups who cannot afford legal representation themselves.
Human rights lawyer, Festus Ogun, gave the charge in Port Harcourt at the Strategic and Public Interest Litigation Lab (Litigalab) organised by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) for young lawyers and students.
Ogun stated that the responsibility of holding leaders accountable rests heavily on legal practitioners, encouraging young lawyers to step into this space.
He warned that the inefficiency of the country’s justice system poses a serious risk to both citizens and investors.
“The truth is that a lawyer must live in the direction of his people and for that reason, young lawyers must take this initiative to defend the interest of the Nigerian public by using the tool of Public Interest Litigation,” Ogun said. “If lawyers do not do it, who else will? We have made it a duty to charge young lawyers to take the bull by the horns by ensuring accountability and transparency in government through the use of Public Interest Litigation.”
He noted that reforms do not happen overnight but emphasised that initiatives like Litigalab would inspire change. “I am very confident that change will come,” he added.
Speaking further, Ogun decried the slow pace of justice in Nigeria, contrasting it with swifter outcomes in international courts. “The snail pace of justice is not limited to environmental degradation alone, but all kinds of cases. Our country remains at serious risk unless we find the courage to restructure our justice system. Investors no longer have confidence to come to Nigeria to invest because when there is a dispute, it takes almost forever before it is determined,” he stated.
Ogun called for true judicial autonomy, the adoption of technology, and an increase in the number of judges. “He that pays the piper dictates the tune. We still see cases where governors buy cars for judges, and the judiciary is dependent on the executive; it shouldn’t be so. Judges still write in longhand in this age of technology. And I have seen a judge adjudicating on 40 cases in a single day — that is unacceptable,” he stressed.
Also, Kolawole Oluwadare, Deputy Director of SERAP, explained that the session aimed to enhance the capacity of young advocates to utilise litigation as a tool for social justice, particularly in the Niger Delta’s extractive industry.
“The aim of this conversation is to raise the consciousness and enhance the capacity of young advocates — young lawyers, students, and accountability club members — to use strategic litigation and bring social justice in Nigeria, particularly in the extractive sector,” Oluwadare said.
He added: “The extractive industry should be accountable not only to regulatory authorities, but to Nigerians and the oil-producing communities who are their immediate stakeholders. They need to be responsible in observing their obligations and in their operations.”
Oluwadare urged young Nigerians to see Public Interest Litigation as a viable pathway for addressing grievances and demanding accountability. “What’s the alternative to the rule of law? We understand the challenges that the judiciary faces in Nigeria and the slow pace of dispensing justice, but the aim is to encourage people to use the law in venting their grievances,” he noted.
The event brought together young lawyers, students, and accountability advocates in Port Harcourt, underscoring the growing push for stronger civic engagement in tackling corruption, environmental degradation, and inefficiency in Nigeria’s justice system.
