Diezani Tells UK Court She Was Targeted and Scapegoated While Denying Bribery Claims

Former petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke has denied all charges under Britain’s Bribery Act, telling jurors she never solicited or took bribes but was targeted as she worked to reform Nigeria’s oil sector. She said the system’s cash-heavy, poorly documented logistics for officials abroad left room for misinterpretation of routine expenses. Alison-Madueke described threats to her life and the kidnappings of family members in the Niger Delta as part of a campaign to undermine her and blamed missing ministerial diaries for gaps in the prosecution’s evidence. She argued that a shift from cash payments to a formal logistics company should have clarified what was legitimate reimbursement. Observers note her background outside Nigeria’s traditional patronage networks and her stance on gifts and late-night visits may have created powerful enemies in a male-dominated political culture. The trial also involves an oil executive now cast by Nigerian authorities as a whistleblower, a claim British prosecutors dispute.

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