A former Nigerian President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan’s statement has been read at the Southwark Crown Court in the United Kingdom (UK) in the ongoing trial of Diezani Alison-Madueke, former minister of petroleum.
In a report by the BBC, Jonathan’s statement was read during court proceedings on Tuesday.
The statement said Jonathan informed the court that it was not unusual for third parties to make payments on behalf of ministers on overseas duties.
Jonathan said he had approved Alison-Madueke’s use of private jets on some foreign trips.
“Any properly incurred incidental or in-kind assistance from third parties would be recorded and reimbursed where applicable,” the BBC quoted the former president as saying in the statement.
Alison-Madueke was the Minister of Petroleum Resources from 2010 to 2015 during the Jonathan administration.
The former minister is standing trial alongside Olatimbo Ayinde, an oil executive, and Doye Agama, her brother, on a five-count charge bordering on accepting bribes.
They all have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
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PREVIOUS COURT PROCEEDINGS
In January, British prosecutors accused Alison-Madueke of accepting bribes in the form of luxury goods and use of high-level properties from industry figures.
The prosecutors had said Alison-Madueke was given high-end properties and luxury goods by people who believed that she would use her influence to favour them for oil contracts.
Jonathan Laidlaw, counsel to Alison-Madueke, told the court that his client had no real influence on the award of oil contracts during her time in office as the minister.
Igho Sanomi, a Nigerian business mogul, and Kevin Okyere, a Ghanaian businessman, have denied paying bribes to Alison-Madueke.
Sanomi and Okyere’s statements made to the UK investigators were also read out in the court on Tuesday.
The BBC reported that Sanomi and Okyere were believed to be part of a group of industry insiders alleged to have bankrolled Alison-Madueke’s spending sprees and luxury home stays.
Sanomi and Okyere were absent when their statements were read in court.
The BBC reported that Okyere, in a written statement given to the investigators of the National Crime Agency (NCA) in June 2016, said he had paid for items bought by Alison-Madueke in 2014 at Peter Jones, a store.
Read Also:Diezani enjoying life of luxury from bribes – UK Prosecutors alleges
The Ghanaian businessman said the former minister did not have enough money when he met her at the shop’s tills, the checkout point.
Okyere said the £3,900 spent to get the items was later reimbursed by Alison-Madueke in cash at his office in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
The businessman denied allegations that he bribed Alison-Madueke, arguing that the claims are “completely untrue”.
Okyere is the founder of the Springfield Group, an oil company in Ghana.
Also, Sanomi gave a statement to the NCA in June 2017.
In the statement, the Nigerian businessman said he bought items in London on behalf of the former minister, adding that funds were later reimbursed.
