Former Nigerian oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke’s lawyer, Jonathan Laidlaw, rejected the allegations that she exercised decisive control over major oil sector deals, saying she was just a ‘rubber stamp’ when she served as oil minister in the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

He told jurors at Southwark Crown Court on Thursday that Mrs Alison-Madueke did not have the authority to award lucrative government contracts.

Mr Laidlaw told the court that, as a minister, her role was to approve oil and gas agreements granted by the government.

Reuters reported that he described her as a mere “rubber stamp” for official recommendations. However, many Nigerian observers have described her as one of the two most powerful ministers in the administration.

Mrs Alison-Madueke served as Nigeria’s oil minister from 2010 to 2015 under the Jonathan administration. She also chaired the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 2014–2015. She fled to London after the Peoples Democratic Party lost the 2015 presidential election.

In the UK, the former minister is on trial on corruption charges, having been charged in 2023 with five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.

UK authorities say the charges are linked to the award of oil and gas contracts during her tenure as petroleum minister.

But she has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, including accepting bribes and conspiracy to commit bribery.

It was reported on Tuesday that she received high-end properties and vast quantities of luxury goods from people who “clearly believed she would use her influence to favour them.”

Mrs Alison-Madueke was said to have “lived a lavish lifestyle in London.”

But Mr Laidlaw said the purchases were made on Mrs Alison-Madueke’s behalf because Nigerian ministers are prohibited from having bank accounts abroad.

He stated that Mrs Alison-Madueke challenges claims regarding the number of properties made available to her and the value of the items she allegedly received.

Mr Laidlaw insisted that any money spent on her personal benefit would be fully repaid.

He explained that personal costs were reimbursed by Mrs Alison-Madueke from Nigeria, while expenditures related to official duties were covered by public funds; therefore, she did not gain any personal financial benefit.

“If there was any financial advantage, it was to Nigeria, enabling the Minister for Petroleum Resources to undertake her ministerial business, and there was, of course, nothing improper about it,” he was quoted as saying.

He asked the jurors to consider whether she actually had any real power to influence which companies secured those contracts.

He stated that the former minister simply endorsed decisions proposed by senior civil servants.

Her lawyer also conceded that Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer and one of the largest globally, has for decades struggled with widespread corruption.

Mrs Alison-Madueke’s UK trial started on Monday and is expected to run for several weeks.

The trial could carry significant penalties if she is convicted. Under the UK Bribery Act, she can face up to 10 years in prison and/or an unlimited fine.

In Nigeria, the courts have ordered the forfeiture of properties worth billions of naira linked to Mrs Alison-Madueke. The anti-graft agency, EFCC, argues that it has evidence of her roles in several corruption cases. However, her absence from the country has stalled her prosecution.

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Mohammed Ma’aji, a colonel in the Nigerian Army, has been identified by military investigators as the major leader of the botched coup plot against President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Apart from being the alleged architect of the coup, the infantry officer is believed by investigators to have bankrolled the process.

In late September 2025, military authorities started arresting senior officers suspected of involvement in the coup, including Mr Ma’aji. By early October of that year, 16 officers had been arrested and detained in connection with the coup plot.

Initially, military authorities were reluctant to admit the coup plot, claiming that the officers were being investigated for “indiscipline and breach of service regulations.”

President Tinubu later sacked service chiefs, retaining only Olufemi Oluyede and Emmanuel Undiandeye.

While Mr Oluyede, formerly the Chief of Army Staff, was appointed as Chief of Defence Staff, succeeding Christopher Musa, Mr Undiandeye retained his position as Chief of Defence Intelligence.

However, amid the tension of Christian genocide claims by US President Donald Trump, Mr Musa was called back and appointed as Minister of Defence. He replaced Muhammed Badaru, who said he resigned on health grounds.

Two months later, the military confirmed the coup report, noting the officers involved will face trial.

Col. Ma’aji: The man behind the coup plot

Military sources who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES said investigators believed that Mr Ma’aji played a key role as a strategist in the coup plot, coordinating planning and logistics.

Another source said Mr Ma’aji was strategic in his planning, citing his earlier efforts to be posted to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

“There was a time he was seeking powerful connections to secure a posting to the ONSA,” the source said, believing that it may be “part of the plan.”

Financial trails have also placed him at the centre of the investigation, one source said.

“He was responsible for transferring funds to co-plotters,” the source said.

One of the transactions under scrutiny is reportedly connected to Timi Sylva, a former governor of Bayelsa State, with whom Mr Ma’aji is believed to have maintained a long-standing relationship from his years of service in the Niger Delta.

Following the arrests of Mr Ma’aji and his alleged co-plotters, investigators searched the residence of Mr Sylva in Abuja, raising suspicions about his involvement as a civilian collaborator in the foiled coup.

Mr Sylva’s spokesperson, Julius Bokoru, in a statement, denied his principal’s involvement in the matter.

Mr Bokoru described his principal as “an unrepentant and thoroughbred democrat” who has consistently supported President Tinubu.

Our sources said those who have interacted with Mr Ma’aji since his arrest described him as unrepentant and emotionally detached, showing little visible remorse as investigations continue.

One source said he was not cooperating with investigators.

Who is Mr Ma’aji?

Mr Ma’aji, whose service number is N/10668, was born on 1 March 1976.

A Nupe native from Edati Local Government of Niger State, he began his military training on 18 August 1995 and completed it on 16 September 2000 as a member of the 47 Regular Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA).

Mr Ma’aji built much of his operational experience in the Niger Delta, an oil-rich region that later became central to his professional and political networks.

He participated in Operation Crocodile Smile II in 2017, a major Nigerian Army exercise designed to address militancy, oil theft and insecurity in the Niger Delta and parts of the South-west.

He also served at the Depot Nigerian Army, later becoming Commander, Operation Delta Safe, and at different times held sensitive operational responsibilities.

The officer was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 2013 and to full colonel in 2017. At the time of his arrest, the 49-year-old officer was serving as the Commanding Officer of the 19 Battalion of the Nigerian Army in Okitipupa, Ondo State.

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The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has again justified its decision to ban and enforce the ban on the production and sale of sachet alcohol.

Speaking on Friday during an interview on Arise News, the NAFDAC Director General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, said the health and safety of children must be prioritized over commercial gains.

She added that the future of children must be protected by avoiding future alcohol addiction. Adeyeye stressed that the action is about protecting the health of citizens.

“So it is on their side that they are all about money, not about health. We are about health and good investments… But we cannot sacrifice our children on the altar of trade,” she said.

Adeyeye explained that alcohol falls under NAFDAC’s regulatory mandate as a food product, noting that the agency was not banning alcohol entirely.

“We are not banning alcohol. We approve alcohol in different packages. It is only in small packages that we are banning.”

No Court Order Against Ban

During the interview, the NAFDAC boss also denied claims that a court order has stopped the enforcement of the ban on sachet alcohol.

Adeyeye maintained that NAFDAC has not received any court order to that effect

“NAFDAC has not been served. If we have been served, I have not been given that,” she said.

She added that the agency resumed enforcement based on legislative backing.

“The Senate gave us the order to resume enforcement,” Adeyeye noted.

Tracing the policy to 2018, she said NAFDAC raised the alarm over sachet alcohol with concentrations of between 43 and 45 per cent.

According to her, an agreement was reached with manufacturers under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Health, giving them five years to reorganise.

“That can be easily squeezed into the pocket of a primary school, secondary school child.”

“We all signed that by, after five years, they will not sell alcohol in sachets,” she said.

According to her, when the agreed time expired, on January 31, 2024, an extension was granted following interventions by lawmakers and certain industry stakeholders.

She added that the extended moratorium expired in December 2025.

“The Minister called me and said there had been some discussion, we should give one year moratorium, an extra one year above the five years that we have given before. And that one year expired December 2025.”

Adeyeye said that despite opposition from manufacturers seeking further extensions, enforcement resumed based on the order given by the Senate.

She dismissed claims that warning labels could curb underage drinking.

She also said the policy aligns with Nigeria’s international obligations.

“Do not use under 18. Do not use in Nigeria, are we kidding ourselves? Are we really kidding ourselves? In Nigeria? Who is going to enforce?”

“In 2010, Nigeria signed an agreement, World Health Assembly, 2010, 193 countries signed it that we will not make alcohol to be easily accessible to vulnerable populations,” Adeyeye added.

On criticisms that NAFDAC continued to register sachet alcohol products during the moratorium, Adeyeye said the agency was acting based on legislative directives.

“We were honouring the moratorium, the extended moratorium that was given by registering within a period.

“I think we are learning our lessons now that we shouldn’t have even listened or register products, a product at that particular period,” the NAFDAC boss stated.

Responding to suggestions that alcohol concentration should be reduced instead of banning sachets, she said the issue was accessibility and concealment.

She disclosed that some schoolchildren are already getting addicted and there is the urgent need for intervention to correct the trend.

“Actually, it is scientifically possible. It is not just the volume. It is the pack size.

“The principal said that in his school, a student said that he cannot study for exam without a sachet alcohol.

“We are making our children addicts. Addicts.”

“Because you are frying your liver slowly with alcohol over time,” Adeyeye clarified.

She added that NAFDAC is shutting down production lines used for sachet production, and not entire companies.

According to her, manufacturers have always been carried along in the developments leading to the current enforcement.

“Lines have been shut down… We are shutting down lines.

“We were having regular meetings, quarterly meetings with MAN.”

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