The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Wednesday successfully blocked an attempt by embattled former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, to return to Nigeria from London to face trial.
Mrs. Alison-Madueke had fled to London shortly after she left office in May 2015, and has stayed away from the country since then.
She later became an object of interest to the UK National Crime Agency which has since then being investigating her for corruption and money laundering. Already some assets linked to her in that country have been frozen.
Those familiar with the matter say she is barred from travelling out of the UK while the investigation lasts.
But it now appears the former minister is tired of staying in the UK, and now wants to return to Nigeria, where she is also being investigated for massive corruption.
As part of the plot, she recently filed an application before Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court, Abuja, seeking to be joined as defendant in the trial of businessman Jide Omokore.
Mr. Omokore, chairman, Atlantic Energy Brass Development and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concept, is facing a nine-count charge along with Victor Briggs, a former Managing Director, National Petroleum Development Company; Abiye Membere, a former Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production at the NNPC, and David Mbanefo, a former Manager, Planning and Commercial at NNPC, for an alleged $1.6 billion fraud.
But counsel for Mrs. Alison-Madueke, Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), suddenly, on September 18, filed an application for his client to be joined as defendant, based on the fact that her name was mentioned in count eight of the charge.
He sought an amendment of the charge to include her as the seventh defendant, “in order to give her the opportunity to defend herself”.
In the said application, the former minister also requested the court to direct the Attorney General of the Federation to facilitate her appearance in court in Nigeria on the next adjourned date in October 2017.
That would have meant Nigeria requesting Britain to allow her travel out of the UK to attend the court hearing.
The EFCC however interpreted her action as a ploy to escape prosecution in the UK and frustrate the ongoing trial in Nigeria.
In mounting a strong challenge to the application, the counsel for the EFCC, M.S. Abubakar, in an 18-paragraph counter-affidavit, vehemently opposed the filing, arguing that, “the applicant realized she was being investigated, and she absconded abroad and sometimes in March this year operatives were in London, but her lawyers refused to allow the operatives interview her.
“My lord, this present application is a plot by the applicant to enable her escape prosecution in London, also to enable her come to Nigeria and scuttle the ongoing case which has already gotten to an advanced stage.”
After hearing arguments by both parties, Justice Dimgba declined to grant the application, and instead, struck out the eighth count in which the former minister’s name appeared.
The verdict effectively ended her dream of returning home after holing up in London for more than two years.
It remains unclear whether she would appeal the ruling.
The trial of Mr. Omokore and his co-defendants continues on October 5, the spokesperson for the EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, said in a statement.
(Premium Times)
Oh well! Please they should allow her, she is welcomed home, Nigerians are eager to see her.
ReplyDeleteWhat about Kola Aluko?
ReplyDeleteOh my God. Efcc come and take a big bear hug.
ReplyDeleteStories
ReplyDeletelmao! This is interesting...for once i can say i am pleased with the court ruling. Her connect is not strong enough in the U.K so no avenue for bribery now she wants to come back to naija. No way aunty you must stay there.
ReplyDeleteNina :)
Waiting
ReplyDeleteLer her stay there and face the music, after all her intention was to hide in United Kingdom..
ReplyDeleteShe wants to come and hide in Nigeria knowing fully well that she can bribe her way out. Not this time witch, face the law in the UK first
ReplyDeleteStella please stop encouraging these horrible stories about Dizanie. We all know she had cancer and had to go to the UK for treatment. Dele Momodu even released unflattering pictures of her during her treatment. With the way the EFCC have been brandishing her name around you would have thought the would have built a case up against her but they haven't. She is insisting on being added to a case so she can clear herself but they are turning it around to something else. Please, what else do you want the woman to do?
ReplyDeleteThis our country, the only thing paining people is that a mere woman, from the South-south of all places, was made a powerful minister and she stepped on the toes of the Muslim cartel who felt oil was their birthright. The money/oil that Babangida or Obasanjo stole, nobody is talking about it anymore. All we hear is Dizanie. Is it because she is a woman? There is no trial against her in the UK. they are not like us in Nigeria where they will detain people forever. She has been there for over 2 years and there is no charge against her contrary to the stories tha the EFCC keep leaking. She has been concentrating on recovering from her illness.
You need to start doing some investigative work of your own and stop just reporting any rubbish you see being printed. Afterall there is a lot of rubbish stories that have been printed about you, but people did not just keep repeating them or assume they must be true because they were being brandished around. Please try and do a bit of proper research into her issue before you reprint stories. You put up an article about cyberbullying. What's being done to her amounts to the same thing.