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A former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has denied allegations of benefiting from proceeds of corruption in the United Kingdom in exchange for awarding government contracts.
The 65-year-old told Southwark Crown Court on Monday that she had “tried to push back on corruption” in Nigeria, which she described as a country grappling with the vice since its colonial era.
Prosecutors allege that several Nigerian businessmen funded lavish spending on Alison-Madueke’s behalf, including more than £2m at Harrods and £4.6m on refurbishing properties in London and Buckinghamshire.
However, Alison-Madueke told the court that such expenses incurred during official engagements were later reimbursed.
“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. I always sought to act impartially,” BBC News reported.
She explained that funds spent on her behalf were refunded by the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company.
According to her, a service company was established in London to manage logistics due to what she described as a disorganised financial structure within the NNPC.
“They paid for all my hotels, chauffeurs to allow me to perform the job that I did,” she said.
The former minister also told the court she was unaware at the time that one of her chauffeurs had allegedly delivered £100,000 in cash to her, insisting the money had nothing to do with her.
The court heard that Alison-Madueke rose rapidly through the ranks at Shell, becoming the first female senior executive in its Nigerian operations.
She said she initially did not want to work for the multinational due to its treatment of her father, a former senior employee who had unsuccessfully challenged the company in court.
“I found the job uncomfortable to put it mildly,” she said, adding that her father, a traditional leader, had once taken legal action against Shell over what she described as “apartheid practice in West Africa.”
She also criticised the company’s handling of oil spills in the Niger Delta, stating it had not done enough “to make good on the devastation that they had caused.”
Addressing security concerns, Alison-Madueke described Nigeria as a “very patriarchal society,” noting that having a woman sitting at the helm was a major no-no.
She added that she had faced serious security threats, including the risk of kidnapping, and that members of her family had been abducted.
Alison-Madueke denied five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
Also on trial is oil executive, Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, who denied one count of bribery and another of bribing a foreign public official.
Meanwhile, her brother, Doye Agama, 69, has also denied conspiracy to commit bribery.
