By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Correspondent
NIGERIA’s FORMER Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has appeared at Southwark Crown Court facing five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery, prosecutors said.
The court heard that between 2011 and 2015, Alison-Madueke allegedly received more than £2 million at Harrods, £4.6 million for refurbishing properties in London and Buckinghamshire, £100,000 in cash, and payments covering private jet flights, chauffeur services, and her son’s school fees. Companies implicated in the case include Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemicals.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that prosecutors described the payments as part of a “pay-to-play” arrangement in which businessmen sought to secure multi-million-pound contracts with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in exchange for personal benefits.
Also, the oil and gas sector, which is Nigeria’s primary source of government revenue and foreign exchange, was reportedly affected as contracts were allegedly awarded through bribery rather than merit.
The prosecution further argued that funds diverted abroad weakened the domestic economy, inflating costs and limiting resources for infrastructure, healthcare, and education.
High-level corruption also undermines investor confidence, the court heard, adding that with recovery of misappropriated assets, including $52.88 million repatriated from the United States in 2025, imposing further administrative costs.
The trial, expected to last 10-12 weeks, also reflects the role of global financial centres like London in facilitating and addressing elite corruption.
Alison-Madueke, also a former Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) president, faces allegations that luxury purchases were funded through misappropriated public resources, ustressing the need for transparent governance in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
