British prosecutors on Tuesday accused former Nigerian oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke of living a “life of luxury” funded by bribes while in office between 2011 and 2015. The 65-year-old, who also served as the first female president of OPEC from 2014 to 2015, appeared at London’s Southwark Crown Court on the first day of her trial.
She faces multiple counts of accepting financial and other advantages from companies seeking lucrative contracts with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), including Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical. Alleged benefits include £100,000 ($137,000) in cash, chauffeur-driven cars, private jet flights, property refurbishments, and payment of her son’s school fees. High-end goods from stores such as Harrods and Louis Vuitton are also cited.
Prosecutors said Alison-Madueke “should not have accepted benefits from those doing, no doubt extremely lucrative, business in oil and gas with government-owned entities.”
Two other defendants, her brother Doye Agama and Olatimbo Ayinde, are also facing bribery charges linked to the case. All three were UK residents at the time of the alleged offences.
Alison-Madueke has been on bail in London since her arrest in October 2015 and has denied the charges. She has faced several legal actions globally, and Nigerian courts seized multiple properties belonging to her in 2017.
The UK National Crime Agency said at the time of her arrest that they suspected she “abused her power in Nigeria and accepted financial rewards for awarding multi-million-pound contracts.” The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) confirmed it still has ongoing cases against her.
