How oil contracts bribe was used to allegedly fund 2019 election – Report

Money paid as bribes to secure oil contracts from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was allegedly used to fund the 2019 election.

According to a report, Jonathon Zarembok, a former BP staff member, who led the company’s West Africa desk, told the court that cargo allocations by the NNPC could have contributed to preparations for general elections in 2019.

However, names of political parties or politicians were not mentioned in the report.

BP is a British multinational oil and gas company based in London.

The 2019 presidential election was majorly contested between President Muhammadu Buhari and ex-vice president Atiku Abubakar.

President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC defeated former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of the PDP in the election.

Zarembok said in the suit he suspected that fees paid by the U.K. energy giant to obtain NNPC contracts would go toward the 2019 elections.

In a witness statement, Bloomberg reported that the former employee said the emails sent in 2017 by a BP executive in Nigeria was a “clear red flag” and implied “there would be pressure to pay bribes.”

“The emails discussed how preparations for elections would get underway in 2018. “We understand what that means,” it quoted the executive.

“We were paying agents in Nigeria huge multiples of what we paid in other regions even though those agents did not perform services of any real value to BP. Our proposed reasons for paying the agent these sums were a sham,” he was quoted as saying.

Zarembok was said to have filed an employment claim against BP, stating that he was “fired for raising concerns about the large sums being transferred to intermediaries to win business in Nigeria.”

“The company then wired $900,000 in fees to a local agent after securing two oil cargoes from NNPC,” he was quoted as saying.

BP denies all allegations made by the claimant.

A related subject came to light when another ex-employee of Glencore, Anthony Stimler, admitted to corruption and money laundering.

Stimler made the confession in a cooperation deal at the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan.

Court documents on Stimler’s part showed that he authorized $300,000 per month on the request of “Foreign Official 1” in connection with an upcoming election.

The unnamed “Foreign Official 1” refers to Alison-Madueke, who served as petroleum minister between 2010 and 2015.