The corruption charges brought forth by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) against former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Allison-Madueke, have seen an adjournment to February 23, 2024. This decision came during a plea and trial preparation hearing in Courtroom 14 at the Southwark Crown Court, presided over by Justice Baumgartner.
During the brief 15-minute inquiry, neither the former minister nor her co-defendants, Olatimbo Ayinde and Doye Agame, were required to enter a plea, but they did confirm their names. Diezani Allison-Madueke acknowledged her identity when asked by the court clerk.
Notably, while Agame requested a variation of his bail conditions to allow him to stay at a different address in the United Kingdom, a request that was granted by the judge, Allison-Madueke made no such application. She remains on a £70,000 bond bail, with the condition to be at her known London address between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. daily.
Before adjourning the proceedings, the judge reiterated the bail conditions to Allison-Madueke and Ayinde, emphasizing the change in Agame’s conditions.
The former minister, who was arrested by the Metropolitan Police in October 2015, faces allegations from the NCA of accepting bribes in exchange for multi-million pounds oil and gas contracts during her tenure under the Goodluck Jonathan administration from 2010 to 2015. Additionally, she is accused of benefiting from as much as £100,000 in cash. However, she has not entered a plea to these charges, and the proposed trial is expected to span between six and seven weeks.
