Alison-Madueke Faults UK Probe After Bribery Acquittal, Cites Ruined Life

Diezani Alison-Madueke, former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, has voiced strong criticism of British law enforcement following her acquittal on bribery charges. She described the 13-year investigation by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) as life-ruining, having devastated her reputation and career and subjected her to years of emotional and psychological distress.

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I’ve not been allowed to travel. I’ve not been allowed to work. They destroyed my reputation and my integrity.

"I’ve not been allowed to travel. I’ve not been allowed to work. They destroyed my reputation and my integrity," Alison-Madueke stated in an interview with the BBC. A jury at Southwark Crown Court acquitted her on Wednesday of five counts of bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery, ending a legal battle that began with her 2015 arrest.

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When your freedom is taken away from you, it has a very deep impact upon you psychologically. I knew that I had never done anything nefarious and I had never done any of the heinous things I was being accused of doing.

Alison-Madueke, who served as minister from 2010 to 2015 and was the first female president of OPEC, called the experience traumatic. "When your freedom is taken away from you, it has a very deep impact upon you psychologically," she said. "I knew that I had never done anything nefarious and I had never done any of the heinous things I was being accused of doing."

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There’s a bit of blame everywhere. The Nigerian authorities need to look into the processes and practices that they deploy in these cases.

Prosecutors had alleged she received lavish benefits, including luxury goods worth approximately £2 million, from businessmen seeking government contracts. However, her defense argued that key documents proving her innocence had vanished in Nigeria. Alison-Madueke claimed these missing records, which included proof of reimbursement for payments, were taken by Nigerian intelligence forces in 2015 and she does not know their whereabouts. She questioned the handling of the investigation by both Nigerian and British authorities, suggesting international law enforcement needs more sensitivity in politically charged cases.

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The long arm of the law when you go into other countries, particularly in politically motivated cases, needs to have a lot more sensitivity.