– These are not good times for Nigeria’s former minister of petroleum, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke
– A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) recently insisted on the repatriation of the former minister
– Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) wants the ex-minister arrested
SERAP has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently seek from the International Criminal Court an arrest warrant to bring former minister of petroleum, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke before the court on allegations of corruption against her.
In a press statement sent to ZENITHBLOG.com on Sunday, September 3 and signed by its deputy director, Timothy Adewale, SERAP urged the federal government to consider the allegations against Mrs Madueke as crimes against humanity and serious enough for it to sanction her prosecution before the court.
Mrs Alison-Madueke has been in the news recently for all the wrong reasons. Photo credit: World Economic Forum
The organization also urged the government to “pursue civil actions to ensure that all the funds allegedly stolen by her are fully recovered and duly accounted for.”
Part of the statement read: “The allegations of corruption against Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke suggest the manifest failure of the government of former president Goodluck Jonathan to protect Nigerians from such heinous crimes.
“Your government now has the responsibility to take bold action to sufficiently redress this injustice committed against Nigerians, and the significant long-term damage for the country.”
The organization said that, “By pursuing international warrant of arrest for Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke in order for her to be brought before the ICC, your government would be showing to Nigerians that it is indeed determined to match its stated commitment to combat grand corruption and its debilitating effects with concrete and bold action.”
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SERAP’s request followed growing allegations of corruption against Mrs Alison-Madueke and the recent disclosure by the Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Prof. Itse Sagay that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had recovered about half a trillion naira from her.
Several court orders have also seized millions of dollars from bank accounts and forfeiture of several houses both in Nigeria and abroad linked to her.
“Article 7(2)(b) of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court among others includes the intentional deprivation of access to food and medicine as crime against humanity. Under Article 30(2)(b), a person has intent in relation to a consequence, for example, where that person means to cause that consequence or is aware that it will occur in the ordinary course of events.”
“Allegedly stealing such huge public funds from a developing country like Nigeria has not only drained Nigerians of their valuable commonwealth but also contributed to poverty, irregular electricity supply, bad roads, poor and inadequate health facilities, underdevelopment, conflicts, and insecurity,” the statement said.
It remains to be senn if the Buhari government will heed the advice of SERAP as regards Mrs Alison-Madueke
The organization stated Nigerians continue to live in extreme poverty because of grand corruption under successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999.
“SERAP believes that depriving individuals of basic necessities may cause physical or mental sufferings, material losses, physical or mental injury, or death,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike, has said the anti-corruption campaign of the federal government cannot be effective because of the inability of national institutions to act independently.
Governor Wike made the comment during a courtesy visit by officials of Chatham House, The Royal Institute of International Affairs, United Kingdom, to Government House, Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, August 30.
The governor stated that political influence has weakened the fight against corruption, stressing that it is difficult to fight corruption when the institutions are weak.
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