Former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, Laments Loss Of Values In Society

Former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has bemoaned the deterioration of values in society.

The former Minister, in a video posted online Sunday, was speaking at a virtual conference organised by an umbrella body of Ijaw cultural associations, the Ijaw Development Group (INDG).

“The ones that have swag, the Yahoo Yahoo boys as my son would say, these, in short, are the role models they are looking at,” she said. “These are the ones that reinforce negative societal norms and values.

“This is a travesty of an unfolding tragedy for us. Why have I spent time talking about fatherless homes and the impact it has on our children? The truth of the matter is that an irresponsible boy tends to become an irresponsible man and it is, therefore, a vicious cycle. If you plant coco-yam, you cannot harvest plantain.”

In July, a Federal High Court, ordered Mrs. Alison-Madueke to appear for an arraignment on money laundering charges filed against her by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

According to the court, the former Minister has been charged with 13 counts of money laundering involving $39.7m and N3.32bn said to be proceeds of unlawful activities.

She is alleged to have escaped to the United Kingdom after leaving office in 2015.

The EFCC has since called for her extradition and sought to seize some of her assets within its jurisdiction.