Former Nigerian petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke has denied multiple bribery charges as her trial commenced on Tuesday at Southwark Crown Court in London. Prosecutors allege that the 65-year-old lived a “life of luxury” funded by illicit payments while serving as Nigeria’s minister of petroleum resources under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
According to British authorities, Alison-Madueke accepted bribes between 2011 and 2015 from individuals seeking “lucrative oil and gas contracts” with Nigeria’s state-owned oil company, receiving “significant financial and other advantages” in exchange for influence.
“She should not have accepted benefits from those doing extremely lucrative business with government-owned entities,” the prosecutor told the court.
The prosecution claims that the former minister received inducements linked to Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical, companies that secured contracts with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its subsidiaries. Alleged benefits included £100,000 in cash, chauffeur-driven cars, private jet flights, refurbishment of London properties, payment of school fees for her son, and luxury items from Harrods and Louis Vuitton.
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Alison-Madueke, who also served as president of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) from 2014 to 2015, has faced legal scrutiny globally, including in the United States. In Nigeria, courts seized properties linked to her in 2017, valued at several million dollars, while the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission still has pending cases against her.
She has been on bail in the UK since her arrest in London in October 2015 and was formally charged in 2023, consistently denying all allegations. The UK National Crime Agency has previously stated it suspected she “abused her power in Nigeria and accepted financial rewards for awarding multi-million-pound contracts.”
Two other individuals, her brother Doye Agama and Olatimbo Ayinde, are also standing trial on related bribery charges. Trial Judge Justine Thornton said she expects the proceedings to conclude by April 24.