Diezani Alison-Madueke, former minister of petroleum, has expressed her desire to return to Nigeria to testify in a corruption case she is being joined as a defendant. Other defendants are Dele Belgore, senior advocate, and Professor Abubakar Sulaiman, ex-Minister of National Planning.
According to Obinna Onya, a lawyer appearing for Alison-Madueke, said the claim that Alison-Maduke was ‘at large’, as stated in the charge sheet was not true.
“The statement made by the prosecution means that the applicant (Diezani) is going to be convicted without being given the opportunity to defend herself,” Onya told trial judge, Rilwan Aikawa. Onya, in his application, prayed for an order “mandating the Attorney General of the Federation, being the agent of the complainant, to facilitate the prompt appearance of the applicant in court on the next adjourned date, to take her plea and to defend the allegations made against her in counts 1, 2,3 and 4 of the charge, numbered FHC/L/35c/2017.” Onya urged Justoce Aikawa to hear his application, which prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, stoutly opposed. Oyedepo claimed he had not been served the Onya’s application and, consequently, urged Justice Aikawa to discountenance the prayer.
The judge directed that parties should be properly served before the application could be heard.
The EFCC has claimed Belgore, one-time governorship candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, and Sulaiman received N450m out of an alleged $115m war chest for the 2015 general election. The slush fund was alleged to have been routed through Fidelity Bank Plc for onward distribution to beneficiaries, most of whom are members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP – the ruling party on which platform ex-President Goodluck Jonathan was seeking re-election at the time.
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