Archive January 26, 2026

Due to technical and legal issues, Diezani Alison-Madueke’s trial in London’s corruption case began on Monday, according to lawyers.

Also read: Ex-Minister Diezani Reappears In London Court for “£100, 000 Bribery” Trial.

The 65-year-old, who became the first woman to lead OPEC between 2010 and 2015, when Goodluck Jonathan was the country’s president, is accused of accepting five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiring to commit bribery.

According to lawyers, the trial may not begin until Tuesday because both the prosecution and defense teams need to come to terms with specific evidence that may or may not be examined during the proceedings and decide who the jurors will be.

Between 2011 and 2015, Alison-Madueke is accused of accepting “financial or other advantages” from individuals connected to the SPOG Petrochemical and Atlantic Energy companies.

These included £100, 000 ($137, 000) in cash, staff costs at several London properties, furniture, chauffeur-driven cars, and a private jet flight to Nigeria.

Other allegations include receiving bribes, including school expenses for her son, Louis Vuitton and other high-end products from Harrods and other outlets.

According to the indictment, accepting these bribes constituted “improper performance” of her duties as oil minister.

Before the trial, which is scheduled to last 10 to 12 weeks, she made an appearance in a London court last week for preliminary proceedings, including jury selection and technical matters.

On bribery-related bribery-related charges, two others, Doye Agama and Olatimbo Ayinde, are also facing charges.

“Power Abuse”

Since her initial arrest in London in October 2015, Alison-Madueke has been on bail.

She has denied the accusations leveled at her.

According to the National Crime Agency (NCA), she was formally charged with accepting bribes in 2023.

Diezani Alison-Madueke allegedly misused her position in Nigeria and accepted financial rewards for signing multi-million-pound deals, according to the NCA at the time.

The NCA, which targets organized crime and serious international crime, announced earlier in 2023 that it had provided evidence to US prosecutors allowing them to recover assets worth $53.1 million related to Alison-Madueke’s alleged corruption.

According to the US Department of Justice, the documents included a 65-meter (213-foot) superyacht, the Galactica Star, as well as expensive real estate in California and New York, as well as.

Alison-Madueke studied architecture in the oil city of Port Harcourt in 1960 before working for Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary. She was born to a wealthy family in Port Harcourt.

She served three significant political positions, first as Minister of Mines and Steel Development and then as Minister of Mines and Steel Development in 2007.

In April 2010, Jonathan appointed her Minister of Petroleum Resources after Yar’Adua passed away.

She became the first woman to lead OPEC in 2014, a position she held for about a year.

A request to stop Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) employees from continuing their ongoing strike has been delayed until January 27th, according to the National Industrial Court in Abuja.

After hearing the counsel’s opinions of both parties, Justice Emmanuel Subilim adjourned the case for decision.

The Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, who is suing the court to compel the stricken FCTA workers to resign from their jobs, filed the lawsuit.

The workers started the strike because of allegedly unresolved welfare issues, including unpaid pay for five months, long-standing promotions, and unfavorable working conditions.

READ ALSO: FCTA, FCDA Workers Start Strike Over “Unmet Demands,” Shut Down Operations.

The FCT Minister and the FCTA are named as defendants in the lawsuit, while Rifkatu Iortyer, the JUAC’s president and secretary, and Abdullahi Saleh are named as defendants.

Maxwell Okpara, the defendants’ attorney, urged the court to join the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) as respondents, contending that their inclusion would impose any ruling of the court on them.

However, James Onoja, SAN, the FCT Minister’s attorney, refrained from submitting the request, arguing only that the two defendants’ suits were legitimately brought against them. He also noted that they are not registered under the Trade Union Act.

Onoja argued that the Federal Capital Territory’s essential services have been undermined by the industrial action and demanded that the court grant the request and order the striking workers to go back to work.

Justice Subilim ruled in his decision regarding the joinder application that the court couldn’t compel the defendants to add more defendants because the claimants had chosen to sue only the two defendants.

A request to stop Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) employees from continuing their ongoing strike has been delayed until January 27th, according to the National Industrial Court in Abuja.

After hearing the counsel’s opinions of both parties, Justice Emmanuel Subilim adjourned the case for decision.

The Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, who is suing the court to compel the stricken FCTA workers to resign from their jobs, filed the lawsuit.

The workers started the strike because of allegedly unresolved welfare issues, including unpaid pay for five months, long-standing promotions, and unfavorable working conditions.

READ ALSO: FCTA, FCDA Workers Start Strike Over “Unmet Demands,” Shut Down Operations.

The FCT Minister and the FCTA are named as defendants in the lawsuit, while Rifkatu Iortyer, the JUAC’s president and secretary, and Abdullahi Saleh are named as defendants.

Maxwell Okpara, the defendants’ attorney, urged the court to join the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) as respondents, contending that their inclusion would impose any ruling of the court on them.

However, James Onoja, SAN, the FCT Minister’s attorney, refrained from submitting the request, arguing only that the two defendants’ suits were legitimately brought against them. He also noted that they are not registered under the Trade Union Act.

Onoja argued that the Federal Capital Territory’s essential services have been undermined by the industrial action and demanded that the court grant the request and order the striking workers to go back to work.

Justice Subilim ruled in his decision regarding the joinder application that the court couldn’t compel the defendants to add more defendants because the claimants had chosen to sue only the two defendants.

The governor of Anambra State, Chukwuma Soludo, has ordered the immediate shutdown of the Onitsha Main Market and other adjacent markets for one week in the first instance in an effort to enforce the state’s strict ban on the controversial Monday sit-at-home order.

Read more about Anambra’s abolishes a sit-a-home, claims that errant workers may forfeit wages.

The market would be closed for another week and then for longer periods if traders didn’t start trading before the one-week shutdown ended.

“And let me tell you this: when I finish this, I’m speaking to you.” This entire main market and all of the nearby markets will remain closed throughout the week.

“Nowhere in this country will have a market.” Do you hear what I’m saying? We’ll come over on Monday to inspect. Soludo said in a statement to traders at the market on Monday that if people aren’t in their respective stores, they will shut them down once more.

I don’t mind closing Main Market for the remainder of this year if you like it. If you don’t like it, trade elsewhere. However, we won’t permit this if you’re here.

We also suspect that anyone who closes their shop has some criminal intent, he continued. “It’s plain economic sabotage.”

Despite government orders and warnings to disobey the sit-at-home order imposed by non-state actors, traders at the well-known Onitsha markets have repeatedly defied the government’s orders to open for business on Monday.

He argued that the closure was necessary to strengthen the state’s authority, send the appropriate signals, and protect law-abiding citizens.

He contends that the government cannot continue to watch as a select few people wilfully violate public safety and ignore official instructions intended to restore normalcy.

“Everywhere is open, even the ones I’m from are from Akwa.” Government offices are accessible. People are running their businesses because the markets are open. Then you’ll descend to West Africa’s Main Market, which was once regarded as the world’s largest market.

Anyone who hasn’t “opened” the main market, or any other market, will be shot down. I am aware of the sit-at-home culture that people have practiced on Mondays for a while, and according to legends, “anyabomination that lasts a year becomes culture.”

“No! In Anambra, this is no longer tolerated. Do you hear what I’m saying? You can either decide to trade here or choose to relocate elsewhere, as I’ll explain to you. Do you hear what I’m saying?

If you don’t want to open this main market, I’ll come in and level it with a bulldozer. Do you hear what I’m saying? And I take it very seriously. I’m not making fun of myself.

Any stores that aren’t open will be locked for a week, the governor continued.

Sit-At-Home “Order”

The Soludo administration has publicly condemned the order, which has been in place for about four years, and has severely impacted economic and social activity in the South-East.

The state government had urged residents to refrain from fear and refrain from engaging in illegal behavior, which it described as economic sabotage against the area.

Later, security personnel, including police and army personnel, were dispatched to secure compliance and seal the market gates.

A Monday sit-at-home has been a trend for parts of Anambra State for years, leaving businesses, schools, and workplaces deserted.

Non-state actors in the South-East have long criticized the practice because it forces traders, transport workers, and students to stay indoors, especially in cities like Onitsha, and it harms the state’s economy.

The shutdown has been a key focus of efforts led by Governor Chukwuma Soludo.

He announced an end to the sit-at-home in April 2022, promised a peace and reconciliation committee, and announced amnesty for youths hiding out.