Testimony at a London court has brought renewed attention to allegations against Nigeria’s former petroleum minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, with her defence rejecting claims that she benefited from bribes linked to her time in office.
Addressing Southwark Crown Court, Alison-Madueke’s counsel, Jonathan Laidlaw KC, said his client neither solicited nor received improper financial advantages from oil industry figures. He told the court that payments made on her behalf for properties and luxury items in the United Kingdom were later reimbursed in Nigeria, arguing that ministers were prohibited from holding foreign bank accounts.
According to Laidlaw, individuals who initially covered Alison-Madueke’s expenses were repaid domestically, and no bribes were requested or accepted. The defence was responding to prosecution claims that she enjoyed an extensive luxury lifestyle in Britain, including the use of high-value properties, chauffeur-driven transport, private jet travel and shopping at premium retailers, with more than £2 million allegedly spent at Harrods.
Alison-Madueke served as Nigeria’s minister of petroleum resources between 2010 and 2015, a role described in court as the most senior cabinet position after the presidency. She has pleaded not guilty to five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
The court heard that investigations into her activities began in 2013. She was arrested in London in 2015 while undergoing cancer treatment but was not formally charged until 2023. Laidlaw said the delay had significantly impaired her ability to defend herself, noting that records in Abuja that could have shown reimbursement of expenses were no longer available.
He also told the court that Alison-Madueke had been unable to return to Nigeria to prepare her defence and that businessmen alleged to have paid bribes had not been charged or extradited. “They remain free, spread across the world,” he said.
Also standing trial is oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, who denies one count of bribery involving Alison-Madueke and a separate charge of bribing a foreign public official. Alison-Madueke’s brother, Doye Agama, a former bishop aged 69, has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery.
Proceedings are continuing.
