The Nigerian presidency has confirmed
the arrest of a former Petroleum
Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, in
London, over allegations of corruption
and money laundering.
“The government is aware of the arrest
and all the government investigative
agencies are working very closely with
the British law enforcement,” the
Senior Special Assistant to the
President, Garba Shehu, told PREMIUM
TIMES exclusively on Sunday.
“Nigerian authorities are saying for the
first time that matters are being
handled with seriousness and deep
commitment. Nobody wants to give
the impression that this government is
frivolous and unserious.
“For this reason, government is only
confirming active collaboration.
Beyond this, we are not saying more.
In due course, Nigerians will be briefed
on updates as appropriate.”
Asked about the identities of the other
four people arrested with the former
minister, Mr. Shehu declined
comments, saying, “as I said no one is
willing to provide further details at this
point”.
The presidential confirmation came
two days after Mrs. Alison-Madueke
was arrested and granted bail by the
UK National Crime Agency over
allegations of corruption and money
laundering.
PREMIUM TIMES had on Friday
exclusively reported the arrest of the
former minister, alongside four others.
The identities of the four other people
arrested along with Mrs. Alison-
Madueke, remained unknown.
The embattled former minister, who
was one of the most influential officials
of the President Goodluck Jonathan
administration, and her four colleagues
were granted “conditional bail” late
that same day.
As part of the bail conditions, Mrs. Alison-Madueke’s travel documents and those of others were reportedly seized, effectively barring them from travelling outside the UK, pending the conclusion of investigation and their arraignment in court.
It is not however clear when the
Minister and her accomplices would be
arraigned in court.
The UK NCA had explained on Saturday that
investigation into allegations of corruption against
the former minister of Petroleum Resources and the
four other people arrested on Friday had been on
since 2013.
The agency said in an update on its website that
investigation of Mrs. Alison-Madueke was originally
handled under the Proceeds of Corruption Unit
(PCU) domiciled at the London Metropolitan Police
Service in 2013 until earlier this year when the case
was transferred to it.
The NCA said following the creation of the
International Corruption Unit (ICU) in line with the
UK Anti-Corruption Plan, the PCU at the
Metropolitan Police and the Overseas Anti-
Corruption Unit of the City of London Police were
scrapped.
The ICU has since become the UK’s prime agency
for the investigation of bribery of foreign public
officials by individuals or companies from the UK,
and money laundering by corrupt foreign officials
and their associates.
A controversial minister
Mrs. Alison-Madueke, one of the most influential
officials of the President Goodluck Jonathan
administration, was first appointed into the federal
cabinet in 2007.
A former board member of Shell Petroleum
Development Company of Nigeria, she was later
appointed Minister of Transport by former President
Umaru Yar’adua.
In December 2008, she was redeployed to the
mines and steel development ministry.
After former Vice President Goodluck Jonathan
became acting president, Mrs. Alison-Madueke was
appointed Nigeria’s first female petroleum minister
in February 2010, a position Mrs. Alison-Madueke
held till May 29, 2015 when Mr. Jonathan left office.
Mrs. Alison-Madueke’s tenure as petroleum minister
turned out one of Nigeria’s most controversial, amid
unending allegations of massive corruption.
Under her watch, dubious oil marketers stole
trillions of naira of oil subsidy money. She retained
her position despite an indictment by the House of
Representatives which investigated the fuel
subsidy scandal.
Probes by independent audit firms, including the
KPMG and PriceWaterhousecoopers, confirmed that
billions of dollars of oil money were missing. The
most notable case of missing money involved
$20billion in 2014, as alleged by a former Central
Bank governor, Lamido Sanusi.
Several shady deals exposed by PREMIUM TIMES
and confirmed by government and independent
auditors were linked to the former minister and her
cronies.
Long before her stint in the oil and gas sector, Mrs.
Alison-Madueke was investigated by the Nigerian
Senate on allegation she paid N30.9 billion to
contractors while she held office as transportation
minister.
In 2009, the Senate indicted and recommended her
prosecution for allegedly transferring N1.2 billion
into a private account of a toll company without due
process.
Regardless of the indictments, Mrs. Alison-Madueke
got elected in November 2014 as the first female
president of oil producing countries alliance, OPEC.
The former minister consistently denies
wrongdoing. In June, after leaving office, she
rejected all allegations of embezzlement saying she
never stole from Nigeria.

www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/191027-presidency-speaks-out-on-alison-maduekes-arrest-in-london.html

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She never stole from Nigeria she only stole from the president GEJ. Happy to miss that man.

Following jejely

Let the show begins...... Can't wait to see this administration treat a corrupt case to the end. All these pick and dump is really not it

heartless people don mess this country well well. If half of the loot can be recovered, Nigeria will became rich again.

Kkk

Good!

Better

Best