The corruption trial of former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, was delayed in London on Monday due to legal and technical issues, according to lawyers involved in the case.
Alison-Madueke, 65, who made history as the first female president of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is facing five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. The charges relate to her tenure as Nigeria’s petroleum minister between 2010 and 2015, during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Legal representatives disclosed that the trial may not commence until Tuesday, as both the prosecution and defence teams are still required to reach agreement on certain pieces of evidence to be admitted during proceedings. The process of finalising the jury selection is also ongoing.
The former minister is accused of receiving “financial or other advantages” from individuals connected to Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical groups between 2011 and 2015. Prosecutors allege that the benefits included refurbishment and staff expenses for several London properties, luxury furniture, chauffeur-driven vehicles, private jet flights to Nigeria, and £100,000 in cash.
Further charges allege that Alison-Madueke also received bribes in the form of her son’s school fees, luxury goods from high-end stores such as Harrods and Louis Vuitton, as well as additional private jet flights. The indictment states that accepting these benefits amounted to the improper performance of her official duties as petroleum minister.
She appeared in a London court last week for preliminary hearings, which covered technical matters and jury selection. The trial is expected to last between 10 and 12 weeks once it formally begins.
Two other individuals, Doye Agama and Olatimbo Ayinde, are also standing trial on related bribery charges.
Alison-Madueke has been on bail since her arrest in London in October 2015. She has consistently denied all allegations against her.
In 2023, she was formally charged with bribery offences, with the National Crime Agency (NCA) alleging that she abused her position in Nigeria to receive financial rewards in exchange for awarding multi-million-pound oil contracts.
Earlier that year, the NCA said it had provided evidence to United States prosecutors, leading to the recovery of assets worth $53.1 million linked to the alleged corruption. These assets reportedly included luxury properties in California and New York, as well as a 65-metre superyacht, Galactica Star.
Alison-Madueke was born in 1960 in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. She studied architecture in the United Kingdom and the United States before joining Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary. Her political career began in 2007 when she was appointed Minister of Transportation under late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, after which she served as Minister of Mines and Steel Development.
Following Yar’Adua’s death, President Goodluck Jonathan appointed her Minister of Petroleum Resources in April 2010. In 2014, she was elected OPEC’s first female president, a position she held for about one year.
London Court Delays Start of Diezani Alison-Madueke’s Bribery Trial
