The corruption trial of former Nigerian petroleum minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, was delayed on Monday in London due to legal and technical issues, according to lawyers involved in the case.
Alison-Madueke, 65, is facing five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery over allegations linked to her tenure as Nigeria’s Minister of Petroleum Resources between 2010 and 2015, during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Proceedings are now expected to commence on Tuesday, as both the prosecution and defence continue discussions on the admissibility of certain evidence and conclude the jury selection process.
Prosecutors allege that Alison-Madueke received “financial or other advantages” from individuals connected to the Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical groups between 2011 and 2015. The alleged benefits include refurbishment works and staff costs at several London properties, furniture, chauffeur-driven vehicles, a private jet flight to Nigeria, and £100,000 in cash.
Additional charges claim she received bribes in the form of her son’s school fees, luxury goods from brands such as Harrods and Louis Vuitton, as well as further private jet flights. Prosecutors argue that accepting these benefits amounted to an improper performance of her duties as oil minister.
The former minister appeared in a London court last week for preliminary hearings covering technical matters and jury selection. The trial is expected to last between 10 and 12 weeks.
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 and has consistently denied all allegations against her. In 2023, the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) formally charged her, alleging that she abused her position in Nigeria by accepting financial rewards in exchange for awarding multi-million-pound oil contracts.
Earlier the same year, the NCA disclosed that it had shared evidence with United States authorities, leading to the recovery of assets worth $53.1 million allegedly linked to Alison-Madueke. The recovered assets reportedly include luxury properties in California and New York, as well as a 65-metre superyacht, Galactica Star.
Born in Port Harcourt in 1960, Alison-Madueke studied architecture in the United Kingdom and the United States before beginning her career with Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary. She later entered politics, serving as Minister of Transport in 2007 under President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, and subsequently as Minister of Mines and Steel Development.
Following Yar’Adua’s death, President Jonathan appointed her Minister of Petroleum Resources in April 2010. In 2014, she made history as the first female president of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a position she held for about a year.
