Ex-Nigerian oil minister denies taking bribes

Ex-Nigerian Oil Minister Denies Taking Bribes

Diezani Alison-Madueke, a former Nigerian oil minister, has rejected allegations that she accepted bribes in exchange for awarding government contracts. At 65, she appeared in Southwark Crown Court, where she defended her actions, stating she had worked to reduce corruption in a country with a long history of it dating back to its colonial era.

“I can state categorically that at no point did I ask for, take or receive a bribe of any sort from these persons and did not abuse my office,” Alison-Madueke told the court. “I always sought to act impartially.”

Prosecutors claim that Alison-Madueke received luxury accommodations and high-end expenditures, including more than £2 million spent at Harrods and over £4.6 million on home renovations. She countered by saying these expenses were later repaid through the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), adding that a logistics firm was set up in London to manage the arrangements due to the NNPC’s financial disarray.

The court heard about a stay in a Buckinghamshire home during Christmas 2011, which was arranged because her ex-husband needed medical care and could not travel back to Nigeria. She said she was not involved in the planning of this accommodation. A second visit, lasting around two weeks, included her and up to twelve officials writing a book to honor the Nigerian president’s advocacy for women. “I took it upon myself to put together that book to showcase what he did for women,” she explained.

Alison-Madueke described another property near Regent’s Park as used for private meetings, while she dismissed another accused property as “completely gutted” and unusable during her visits. She also mentioned that her mother and herself stayed in St John’s Wood apartments, with the rental costs covered by Nigerian businessman Kolawole Aluko. She argued that this was cheaper than the £2,000-a-night hotel stays she had previously used, such as those at the Savoy or Dorchester.

She detailed her career at Shell, rising to become the first senior female executive in its Nigerian division. Despite her initial reservations about working for the multinational due to her father’s past conflicts with the company, she defended her role, citing the need to address environmental issues in the Niger Delta. “I found the job uncomfortable to put in mildly,” she said, referencing her father’s legal efforts against Shell for “apartheid practice in West Africa.”

Alison-Madueke faces five counts of accepting bribes and one of conspiring to take them. Meanwhile, oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, is also on trial, denying one bribery charge and another related to bribing a foreign public official. Her brother, former archbishop Doye Agama, 69, has similarly denied all allegations against him.