Written Document: Why I Approved Diezani’s Use Of Private Jet, Jonathan Explains To UK Court 

 

 

By Olumuyiwa Olumuyiwa

 

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has explained to a United Kingdom court the reason he approved the use of  private jet for the Minister of Petroleum during his reign, Diezani Allison-Madueke, during some trips.

 

Jonathan’s explanation was contained in a statement read at the Southwark Crown Court in the United Kingdom (UK) in the ongoing trial of Alison-Madueke,

 

According to the BBC, Jonathan’s statement was read during court proceedings on Tuesday.

 

 

In the statement, the former president 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 became a household name in Nigeria following her appointment by Jonathan as the person to oversee one of the most significant sectors in the country

 

She was at the helm of the ministry for five years (2010-2015).

 

Meanwhile, immediately after she left office, Allíson-Madueke has been embroiled in litigations bordering on financial malfeasance during her time in office.

 

She 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.

 

 

There are many cases hanging around the neck of Allíson-Madueke, 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.

 

 

 

According to the BBC, 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 the court.

 

 

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.

 

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.

 

Sanomi said his companies “always won their contracts fairly bidding against other competitors and that at no point was Mrs Alison Madueke or anyone else improperly involved in any allocation.”

 

 

In written statement, Jonathan tells UK court he approved Diezani’s private jet use for foreign trips