The investigative panel set up by the Imo state government on the 15th of July, 2019 to look into the activities of the Imo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (ISOPADEC) from May 2011 to May 2019 has submitted its report.
Findings of the panel linked former Governor Rochas Okorocha to what the panel described as ‘not only revealing but shocking’ level of malfeasance.
The report held that the former governor, in collusion with top officials of his government misappropriated huge sums of money meant for the development of the oil producing communities of Imo state.
The panel submitted that at the end of Okorocha’s eight years in office as governor, a whopping sum of N6,044, 774, 341.37 belonging to the commission has remained missing and unaccounted for by the Okorocha administration.
Submitting the report to Governor Emeka Ihedioha on Wednesday at the Government House, Owerri, chairman of the panel, Dr. Romanus Ezeogu said that the panel’s findings on the finance and monetary transactions in the commission were heart-rending as the plundering was executed with the ‘depth of wickedness’.
According to him, citizens and some managing directors colluded with the immediate past governor to misappropriate the funds of ISOPADEC with impunity.
Ezeogu said, “The administration of Rochas Okorocha handled the funds of ISOPADEC within his eight years tenure from the pit of wickedness. The short fall in revenue accrual from the federation accounts unaccounted for stood at N6, 044, 774, 341.37”.
He revealed that the panel discovered a systemic diversion of the commission’s funds by the Okorocha administration, adding that the past administration grabbed funds from other sources and institutions in the state to make up and cover up for diverted funds in ISOPADEC.
He listed such sources and institutions to include bailout fund, Secondary Education Management Board account, primary school teachers account, LGA joint labour salary/pension, Paris Club Foreign Loan and Imo State IGR Sweeping Account.
His words, “Simply put, what really happened translates to the fact that after diverting the commission’s fund for whatever purpose, the bare-faced administration of Rochas Okorocha would grab funds from other institutions to make up or cover his misappropriation of funds.
“The issue here begs for explanation on what happened to the original 40% monthly derivation fund allocated to the ISOPADEC. Rochas Okorocha should roundly be held responsible for the entire fund missing. The law establishing ISOPADEC provides its funding from the 13% derivation from the federation accounts and not from other sources”, he said.
He pointed out that the panel also discovered arbitrary release of funds by the Okorocha administration close to the inauguration of the Emeka Ihedioha administration, adding that a whopping sum of N422 million was released to a firm for the supply of pre-inauguration vehicles while the sum of N200 million was hurriedly released for the purchase of transformers during the political campaign era.
Both the transformers and the pre-inauguration vehicle could not be accounted for.
According to Ezeogu, the panel checked and scrutinized the cash books, called for bank statements of the multiple bank accounts operated by the commission and visited the Corporate Affairs Commission, Abuja for verification of the records of the contractors that transacted business with ISOPADEC.
“Without bias, a lot of irregularities were discovered and appropriate recommendations made”, he said.
In his response, Governor Ihedioha appreciated the painstaking efforts of the panel, promising to look into the report with a view to passing a white paper to that effect.
“I am grateful for your painstaking effort in carrying out your assignment. Going forward, it is important we get through what happened in the past if we must reposition the Commission to realize its mandate.
“It is important to note that this is not a witch-hunt. I assure us of fairness and justice while implementing these recommendations, after the white paper must have been submitted”.
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