by Nnamdi Akpa

The judicial panel of inquiry set up to investigate activities of the Abia Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development Fund (ASPPIDF) has uncovered N24 billion fraud between 1999 and 2012.

Chairman of the panel, Justice Okey Nwosu, gave the figure when he presented the panel’s five-volume report to the state governor, Theodore Orji, at the Government House in Umuahia on Monday.

Nwosu said the amount was part of the internally-generated revenue by ASPPIDF since its inception in 1999.

The panel asked the state government to ensure a comprehensive audit of the agency to determine the exact amount and those involved in the fraud.

In his response, Orji said the panel was set up “not to witch-hunt but to find out why the fund could not live up to people’s expectation”.

The governor said he regretted “the colossal revenue loss” in the agency, saying that the money could have been used in the development of the state. He commended the panel for the effort in carrying out its assignment and assured that the recommendations would be implemented.