Former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has spoken out forcefully following her acquittal in a London court, accusing British authorities of inflicting severe damage on her reputation and personal life after what she described as a prolonged and emotionally draining 13-year investigation into corruption allegations.
In a candid interview with the BBC, Alison-Madueke expressed deep frustration over the long-running probe conducted by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA), insisting that even though she has now been cleared of bribery charges, the years of scrutiny have left lasting personal and professional scars that cannot easily be erased.
According to her, the investigation significantly restricted her freedom, limited her ability to travel, and prevented her from working in any capacity, effectively placing her life on hold for more than a decade. She described the experience as “painful and traumatic,” adding that the psychological toll of being under constant suspicion had been profound and long-lasting.
“I’ve not been allowed to travel. I’ve not been allowed to work. They destroyed my reputation and my integrity,” she said during the interview. “When your freedom is taken away from you, no matter how you try to handle it, it has a very deep impact upon you psychologically.”
Alison-Madueke, who made history as Nigeria’s first female Minister of Petroleum Resources and also became the first female President of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), argued that her prominence in the global oil sector made her an easy target for investigators seeking high-profile cases. She suggested that her position as a pioneering woman in a male-dominated industry further exposed her to unfair scrutiny.
DOYA News gathered that she believes investigators failed to fully consider the political environment and institutional realities surrounding her time in office. She maintained that her tenure as petroleum minister was marked by efforts to reform Nigeria’s oil sector and confront entrenched corruption networks, actions which she claims created powerful enemies who later influenced the allegations brought against her.
“I was the first female to enter this sort of position as petroleum minister and as head of OPEC in a very misogynistic society,” she said. “They should have taken a step back and looked with a little more depth at the truth of the situation on the ground.”
Despite the long legal battle, Alison-Madueke insisted that she never doubted her innocence. She maintained that all accusations of bribery and misconduct were false and built on misinterpretations of legitimate official activities carried out during her time in office.
“I have always maintained my innocence because I knew I had never done anything nefarious and had never committed any of the heinous things that were alleged,” she stated firmly.
The case against her, which formally began in January, stemmed from charges filed by UK prosecutors in August 2023. She was accused of accepting bribes in the form of luxury goods, travel benefits, and access to high-end properties from oil industry figures. In exchange, she allegedly facilitated the awarding of lucrative oil and gas contracts during her tenure as minister.
However, Alison-Madueke has consistently rejected those allegations, arguing that critical evidence that could have supported her defense was removed years earlier during a 2015 raid on her residence in Abuja. She claimed that boxes of financial records and receipts, which she insists demonstrated that payments made on her behalf were legitimate and later reimbursed, were taken by Nigerian intelligence agencies and never returned.
“Those items were taken away by our intelligence forces from my home in Abuja in 2015,” she said. “I have no idea what happened to them.”
The former minister also referenced a written statement submitted to the court by former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who appointed her as petroleum minister. In the statement, Jonathan reportedly noted that it was not unusual for third parties to make payments on behalf of government officials during official international assignments, a practice he suggested was part of standard administrative arrangements at the time.
Despite her acquittal in the United Kingdom, Alison-Madueke’s legal and reputational battles are far from over. She continues to face lingering questions linked to investigations in other jurisdictions, including the United States, where authorities have pursued asset recovery efforts connected to oil transactions allegedly linked to her period in office.
In 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the recovery of approximately $53 million in assets allegedly connected to oil businessmen accused of benefiting from contracts awarded during her tenure. Prosecutors in that case claimed she used her position to influence the allocation of lucrative oil deals. Alison-Madueke, however, dismissed those allegations, arguing that she was never formally charged or given the opportunity to defend herself in those proceedings.
“I was never given the opportunity to fight that because I wasn’t even charged,” she said in response to the claims.
She further maintained that all oil contracts awarded during her time in office followed established due process and regulatory procedures within Nigeria’s petroleum sector. According to her, there was no deviation from official procurement rules, and all decisions were made within the framework of government policy.
“The contracts were subjected to the exact due process that they were supposed to go through,” she explained.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has previously stated that it recovered approximately $153 million and more than 80 properties allegedly linked to the former minister as part of broader anti-corruption investigations. Alison-Madueke, however, has consistently challenged those claims, arguing that the assets in question were never directly traced to her and that she is not aware of the full details of the forfeiture process.
“The assets that have been forfeited were not actually traced directly to me,” she said. “I don’t know what has happened to these matters at all. It’s now that I’ll have the freedom to find out what exactly has gone on there.”
Following her acquittal, Alison-Madueke indicated that she intends to break her long silence and speak more openly about the events of the past decade. She suggested that she would soon share her perspective on both the investigation and her future plans, signaling that her public response to the long-running controversy may only just be beginning.
“I will speak about what has happened over the past 10 years and what comes next in due course,” she concluded.
DOYA News understands that her remarks are likely to reignite debate over one of the most high-profile corruption investigations involving a former Nigerian public official in recent history, as questions continue to linger over the intersection of international investigations, domestic politics, and the global oil industry.