Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Deziani Alison Madueke has declared the government has falsely accused of having links with a recently $52 million from the US.

The former Minister stated that the said $52 million was rather recovered from a Nigerian businessman, Mr. Kola Aluko.

Responding through her lawyer, Chief Mike Mike Ozekhome SAN, the former minister accused the government and certain forces bent on discrediting her of cooking a “cocktail of lies” aimed at tarring her black

She stated that several unfounded lies and narratives have been cooked up against her. According to her, “Many of the narratives are outrightly false; some others sheer outlandish speculations; and most, simply bizarre stories cooked up by her traducers to extract a Shylock’s pound of flesh from her for reasons she does not know and cannot even fathom.”

The former minister said that, “This is not the first time this genre of outlandish allegations have been levelled against DAM. Sometime ago, she was widely but falsely accused of owning a diamond-studded bikini underwear allegedly valued at $12,000,000!. Incredible!! The allegation was so unnatural, wild and baseless that the then Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, was compelled to publicly deny and denounce the vile allegation as being not only false, but preposterous.”

In a statement titled “There is no Such thing and “Deziani Loot” published on the website on Mike Ozekhome chambers, the former minister stated that despite the litany of attacks, outlandish allegations and evil orchestration’s against her, neither the Nigerian nor the UK government has tried and found her guilty of any crime.

Narrating her ordeals, including a grueling eight month -long chemotherapy resulting from breast cancer, only God and the love of friends and family have kept her even when she has been holed up in the UK without any source of livelihood.

The former minister reminded her traducers that prior to her stint in government, she was a high-flying achiever who always kept a clean sheet and has served Nigeria in different capacities without any stain.

Her full statement reads:

They now falsely termed it “Diezani loot”. Nothing of the sort ever happened. She was never involved in the purchase, use and sale of the said yacht. The yacht Galactica, from information readily available in the public domain and in open sources, was purchased by Mr Kola Aluko who had used the vessel until he agreed to its forfeiture to the United States of America.

The yacht Galactica was neither owned nor ever used by our client. DAM has in fact never set her eyes on the yacht. Kola Aluko is an experienced businessman who had been in business well before DAM came into office as HMPR.

The only tenuous basis for deliberately linking DAM to the said yacht is the false narrative that the Strategic Alliance Agreements (SAAs) which were entered into between Kola Aluko & Jide Omokore’s Atlantic Energy companies and NNPC, were allegedly corruptly awarded to the said companies by DAM.
DAM was not the GMD of the NNPC as so did not and could not have awarded the said contracts.

the development of the critical Gas sector). This sum which was saved for the development of the important Gas Sector was summarily spent and disbursed immediately by the Buhari administration upon assumption of office. No one appears interested in this foresight or patriotic inclination.

THE SENSITIVE NATURE OF THE POSITION OF HMPR
It should be appreciated by all that DAM’S position as the Federal Minister of Petroleum Resources was an extremely sensitive one that required careful navigation. This is a position which had before then and till now been mostly reserved for and been occupied by the ruling Presidents of Nigeria in their personal capacities. This position came not only with its burdens, but also with special legitimate privileges which have since formed the linchpin and cornerstone of the underlying sundry accusations levied against her, but without any proof of having committed any offence known to law.

DAM HAS BEEN INVESTIGATED FOR 10 YEARS WITHOUT ANY EVIDENCE OF CORRUPTION
For the avoidance of doubt, DAM remains the only former minister who has been kept under full focus and investigation in the United Kingdom by the UK authorities, in collaboration with the Nigerian authorities, since 2nd October, 2015. This is almost 10 years ago; and just barely one week after she completed and survived a grueling 8- month serial chemotherapy treatments for Triple Negative breast cancer. During this agonizing time, she went into a coma, escaping death by the whiskers. It could only have been God at work that is alive today!

CONFIRMATION BY THE PAST EFCC CHAIRMAN THAT DAM IS INNOCENT OF THESE VILE ALLEGATIONS
It is of interest to note that on two separate occasions, the immediate past Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, confirmed to DAM’s other lawyers that no funds from the coffers of the Federal Government of Nigeria have been found ever stolen by her; and that no such funds had ever been traced to her.

DAM’S TRAVAILS ARE DRIVEN BY WILD SPECULATIONS AND PUBLIC LYNCHING MINDSET
DAM’s travails over these years have been founded solely on baseless and unfounded speculations and allegations which wrongly alleged that she obtained unlawful gifts and favours from operators within the petroleum industry. She had never been accosted or charged with stealing or pilfering government money. These matters of obtaining unlawful gifts and favours are now subject of proceedings against DAM in the United Kingdom.

DAM HAS BEEN DEPENDING ONLY ON GOODWILL FOR HER SURVIVAL
It is only recently that DAM was actually charged to court in the UK on the 2nd of October, 2023. She had prior to that date been held in the UK for a prolonged period of over eight years whilst the UK’s authorities conducted their investigation on her. As she had no work papers, she was not permitted to work to fend for herself. She has not even been permitted to leave the UK since the 2nd of October, 2015, till date. Thus, for nearly ten years, DAM has had to depend for her survival, solely and entirely on the goodwill of a few friends and family members to survive.

SALIENT FACTS TO NOTE ABOUT DAM BUT WHICH HER TRADUCERS WILL WANT BURIED
The following facts are worth noting about DAM for the sake of history and posterity:

DAM was the most senior black woman ever in the African Oil and Gas Public Sector (between 2010 & 2015).
DAM was the first female Executive Director of Shell Petroleum Development Company Nigeria, in its entire history in Nigeria; a position she did not lobby for. She was identified, recognised and appointed, through her sheer dint of hard work and sense of professionalism by the relevant Global Heads of Shell in the Hague, Netherlands,
DAM has so far been the first and only female Petroleum Minister in Nigeria’s history. She never lobbied for this position. She was actually initially nominated without her knowledge.

DAM has been the first and only female President of OPEC in the organization’s entire history since its founding in 1960. She also did not lobby for this lofty position.
DAM was nominated for and served in various federal ministerial positions under two separate Presidents; positions she never sought nor lobbied for.

OUR PLEA TO ALL

We plead, as her lawyers, with all and sundry that she be accorded fair hearing and that the process of these UK court proceedings be allowed to take their natural course to avoid prejudice to her in the ongoing subjudice UK proceedings against her.

Those purveyors and peddlers who habitually spin these outrightly false, unfounded, defamatory, unintelligent and indefensible narratives to denigrate and humiliate her should please find better use of their time and leave DAM alone. Let the law take its natural course without interference. We humbly pray