A former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has denied allegations of bribery and abuse of office while testifying at a UK court.
Appearing before Southwark Crown Court on Monday, the 65-year-old, as reported by BBC, told the court she neither requested nor accepted bribes in exchange for awarding government contracts.
“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,” she said, adding, “I always sought to act impartially.”
Prosecutors allege that several Nigerian businessmen funded lavish expenses on her behalf, including more than £2m spent at Harrods and about £4.6m on refurbishing properties in London and Buckinghamshire.
The prosecution also claimed she had access to multiple high-value properties, including a £2.8m home in Marylebone, a residence in Buckinghamshire, and other luxury homes.
However, Alison-Madueke told the court that such expenses incurred during official duties were later reimbursed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company.
She explained that a London-based service company handled logistics due to what she described as the “messy” financial structure of the organisation.
“They paid for all my hotels, chauffeurs… to allow me to perform the job that I did,” she said.
The court heard that she and her extended family spent five days during Christmas 2011 at a property in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire.
She said she was not involved in arranging the stay.
On a second visit, she said, it was over two weeks when she and 10 to 12 officials wrote a book praising the Nigerian president’s support for women.
“I took it upon myself to put together that book to showcase what he did for women,” she said.
Addressing other allegations, Alison-Madueke said a property overlooking Regent’s Park was used for “discrete” official meetings, while another property cited by prosecutors was undergoing extensive renovations and was not habitable when she visited.
The court further heard that she and her mother stayed in apartments in St John’s Wood, with rent allegedly paid by Nigerian businessman Kolawole Aluko.
Alison-Madueke said the arrangement was more cost-effective than hotel stays costing up to £2,000 per night at establishments such as the Savoy and Dorchester.
She also denied knowledge of a £100,000 cash delivery allegedly made by one of her chauffeurs, stating that the money was not connected to her.
Alison-Madueke told the court how she rose through the ranks at Shell to become its first senior female executive in Nigeria, despite reservations stemming from her father’s past dispute with the company.
She said the company has not done enough in addressing oil spills in the Niger Delta and that more should have been done to remedy environmental damage in the region.
When asked about her own security concerns, she claimed Nigeria was a “very patriarchal society,” and that a “woman sitting at the helm was a major no-no.”
She added that she was “under dire threats of kidnap” and that members of her family had been seized.
Altogether, Alison-Madueke denied five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
Also standing trial is oil industry executive Olatimbo Ayinde, who denies charges of bribery and bribing a foreign public official, while Alison-Madueke’s brother, Doye Agama, a former archbishop, denies conspiracy to commit bribery.
The trial continues.
