A noted Nigerian politician arrested off the soil of Nigeria,was from the party of former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, is an indication of mandates being carried out by the New Nigerian Oil Minister, under President Buhari’s government.
Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke was arrested in London. A source from Nigeria’s presidential circle, and another person with links to her family were also arrested.
President Goodluck Jonathan, was defeated by Muhammadu Buhari at the polls in March 2016.
News of the female Nigerian politician arrested is shocking to most, as Buhari who defeated her party, took office in May of 2016 promising to root out corruption in Africa’s most populous country, where few benefit from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) enormous energy resources.
Nigerian media outlets, including Channels TV, said that Alison-Madueke had been granted bail after several hours in custody.
In a sign that the arrest had been coordinated with Nigerian authorities, the Financial Crimes Unit sealed off one of Alison-Madueke’s houses in the upmarket Asokoro district, in the capital Abuja – two Security Officials reported.
As Minister of Petroleum Resources, Alison-Madueke pledged to transform Nigeria’s oil and gas industry so that all Nigerians benefit. One of the most controversial policies introduced under Alison-Madueke was the government’s plan to remove state subsidies on fuel prices. Alison-Madueke supported the discontinuation of the subsidy, “because it poses a huge financial burden on the government, disproportionately benefits the wealthy, and encourages inefficiency, corruption and diversion of scarce public resources away from investment in critical infrastructure.”
Alison-Madueke was the first woman to hold the position of Minister of Petroleum Resources in Nigeria, and in October 2010 she became the first woman to head a country delegation at the semi-annual OPEC conference. She was also the first female Minister of Transportation, and the first woman to be appointed to the board of Shell Petroleum Development Company, Nigeria.
During Alison-Madueke’s time in office, former central bank governor Lamido Sanusi was sacked after he raised concern that tens of billions of dollars in oil revenues had not been remitted to state coffers by the government-run oil company Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), between January 2012 and July 2013.