Crunch Times News

By Otobong Gabriel,  Abuja 

Former Nigerian Minister Alison-Madueke is facing trial over allegations that she received lavish benefits from a company seeking oil contracts. Court documents revealed she stayed at a London house with a private cinema room several times over two years, including a six-week period spent writing a book about the Nigerian presidency.

She was supported by a personal chef and a driver, who also handled shopping deliveries, while the property and £300,000 in refurbishments were reportedly funded by Tenka Limited—a company with ongoing dealings with state-owned entities and new oil contracts in the works.

Between May 2011 and January 2014, Tenka allegedly paid £500,000 in rent for two central London flats occupied by Alison-Madueke and her mother. 

Records from the company’s Nigerian offices reportedly confirm these payments.

Alison-Madueke sat in court alongside oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, who faces bribery charges linked to her, as well as a separate count of bribing a foreign public official. 

Her brother, former Archbishop Doye Agama, 69, is charged with conspiracy to bribe and joined the proceedings via video link due to health concerns. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

The trial, expected to last around 12 weeks, sheds light on Nigeria’s oil sector—a cornerstone of the economy that has often left ordinary citizens feeling excluded from its wealth. 

Nigeria is among the 13 member countries of OPEC, the body that manages global oil supply and pricing.