UK court clears former petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke of all corruption allegations

Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has been cleared of bribery allegations after a court in the United Kingdom delivered its verdict on Wednesday.

A jury sitting at Southwark Crown Court found the former minister not guilty on six counts of bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery.

Alison-Madueke, who served as Nigeria’s petroleum minister between 2010 and 2015 under the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, had been accused of receiving benefits from oil and gas industry figures seeking access to lucrative contracts in Nigeria.

Prosecutors alleged that she enjoyed what they described as a “life of luxury” in London in exchange for influence over the award of oil-related contracts.

However, the 65-year-old consistently denied all allegations, maintaining throughout the proceedings that she neither accepted bribes nor possessed direct authority to award government contracts.

Following more than 46 hours of deliberation, the jury returned unanimous not-guilty verdicts on all six charges, bringing the high-profile case to a close.

The verdict represents a significant legal victory for the former minister, who has faced scrutiny and multiple investigations in Nigeria and abroad since leaving office in 2015.