By Don Silas
Former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Alison-Madueke, on Monday, appeared in a London court over charges of receiving bribes in the form of cash, flights on private jets, luxury goods and the use of high-end properties in Britain in return for awarding oil contracts.
Making her first court appearance at Westminster Magistrates Court, Alison-Madueke spoke only to give her name, date of birth and address.
The 62-year-old was not asked to enter a plea.
The charges against her, read out in court, all related to events alleged to have taken place in London during her time as a minister in Nigeria.
Prosecutor, Andy Young alleged that Alison-Madueke accepted a wide range of advantages in cash and in-kind from people who wanted to receive or continue to receive the award of oil contracts which he said were worth billions of dollars in total.
This is coming a few weeks after the former finance minister in Nigeria was charged with bribery offences by the UK National Crime Agency (NCA).
Alison-Madueke was arrested in London in 2015, shortly after stepping down as minister. She has spent the past eight years on police bail, living in St John’s Wood, an expensive area of London.
She was Nigeria’s Minister for Petroleum Resources between 2010 and 2015, during the administration of former president Goodluck Jonathan.
She is the second high-profile Nigerian politician to face prosecution in Britain in recent years, following James Ibori, a former Delta State governor.
