The Judicial Panel of Inquiry on the Recovery of Government Property and Funds says it has recovered a Toyota Hilux vehicle from the former Chairman of Abia State Oil Producing Communities Development Commission, ASOPADEC, Sam Nwogu.
According to the panel, the former ASOPADEC chairman said that the vehicle was bequeathed to him by the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.
Speaking during the cross examination, the Chairman of the Panel Justice Florence Duruoha-Igwe, rtd, said that evidence clearly showed that that the vehicle in question was used by head of the Works Department in ASOPADEC, Mr Gberemakor Chukwuemeka.
Justice Duruoha-Igwe said efforts made to trace if the vehicle was bequeathed to Nwogu by NDDC have not been successful. She therefore directed that the vehicle to be parked at the panel’s premises.
She noted that Nwogu failed to adhere to the notice served on him to produce the vehicle for physical Inspection by the panel.
In his submission, the Lead Counsel to the Panel , H .N. Doruoha said Nwogu failed to comply with the directive of the panel, adding that the notice served on him clearly stated that he should produce the said vehicle for inspection.
Counsel to Sam Nwogu, A .S. Amaramiro, had argued the vehicle in contention was not allocated to him by the Abia State Government but by the NDDC.
Abia panel recovers vehicle from former govt official