Admiral Alison Madueke, a former Chief of Naval Staff, at the Lagos State High Court, has filed a lawsuit praying for a legal declaration to end his marriage to Diezani, former Minister of Petroleum and demanding that she stop using his last name and change to her maiden name, Agama.
In his petition, he stated continuous use of his name by Diezani, after their marriage had hit the rock, may result in mistaken liability, amongst others.
He stated that the former Petroleum minister had earlier filed for divorce at the Nasarawa State High Court in 2021, citing an irreconcilable breakdown of their marriage, seeking to end their union formally which he did not reject before the marriage was dissolved by the court.
Diezani, the first female President of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries was accused by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of siphoning $2.5bn from the federal government between 2010 to 2015 as a minister under the administration of former president, Goodluck Jonathan.
However, Madueke, a former military governor of Anambra and Imo states decried the continuous use of his name by Diezani
The duo tied the knot on June 30, 1999, under the Marriage Act.
Madueke said, “On the 13th day of April 2022, judgment was delivered in Suit No. NSD/MG345/2021 by Hon. Justice A.A. Ozegya dissolving the marriage between the petitioner and the respondent on the ground that the marriage has broken down irretrievably.
“The said dissolution of marriage has now become absolute by the operation of law.
“Even though the marriage has been dissolved and is now legally finalised, the respondent continues to use the petitioner’s first name (Alison) and surname (Madueke) as her own without any justification or consent from the petitioner.
“It is now more than two-years that the respondent continues to use the name of the petitioner to his embarrassment.”
According to him, a formal request to stop using his name was given to Diezani on December 14, 2023, but this hasn’t stopped her.
“The respondent has continued to hold out herself as the wife of the petitioner even when the marriage has been dissolved.
“The respondent is undergoing criminal trials in both Nigeria and the United Kingdom. The charge in Nigeria is Suit No. FUC/ABI/CR/208/2010.
“The respondent faces public allegations of corruption and financial misconduct, for which trials are ongoing for both.
“The persistent portrayal of the respondent as the spouse of the petitioner is creating embarrassment, a misleading impression and tarnishing the reputation, integrity, and public image of the petitioner.
“The respondent’s continued use of the petitioner’s first and surname falsely suggests to the public a continuing relationship between the parties though the same has since legally ended.
“The respondent’s continued use of the petitioner’s first and family names poses a significant risk of legal and financial harm to the petitioner.
“The petitioner seeks the intervention of this Honourable Court to prevent the respondent from further using his first name and surname, thereby safeguarding his image, personality, and reputation,” he added in his petition.
He has sought a court order mandating Diezani to change to her maiden name and to publicly disclose in a national newspaper, both in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, that she has ceased using his surname.
