Galery

1

Following the fake registration plates of his car, former transport minister Michalis Liapis has scandalized the public again. This time, the epicentre of reports includes the Liapis’s family villa in Megalo Chorio in Evritania which apparently has been built with government funding.

According to the charges, Liapis and the co-owners of the building have used public funds with state co-financing for the creation of units for rural tourism, in order for the relevant construction works to be carried out. However, there are doubts whether the building has functioned as a guest house and for what period (the law requires that the function must not change for at least a decade).

Certain residents of the area claim that they do not remember having seen any tourists staying in the house of the Liapis family. Member of New Democracy and former governor of Evritania Kontogeorgos is also involved in the case, since funds absorption was carried out via the regional company "Evritania" which he headed.

As Ethnos newspaper mentioned, Karpenisi Prosecutor’s Office announced last Thursday that 18 

members of the District Council of Evritania who served until the end of 2010, were being investigated 

for fraud, since they had provided an illegal loan guarantee to the company "Evritania" so that it could borrow the amount of 4.7 million euro. Those investigated also include current MP from the region of New Democracy Kontogeorgos, who was the CEO of the specific company in 1992-1993.

According to the charges of former employees of the company, as well as local officials, Michalis Liapis has used the position he held in the then government of Konstantinos Mitsotakis as Deputy Minister of Commerce, and included the house in Megalo Chorio which belonged to his aunt, Vasiliki Liapi, in public programmes for the development of rural tourism, so that five tourist guest houses could be built.

According to the same sources, the funding amounted to 10 million drachmas, since the programme granted 2 million drachmas for the construction of each room. At the time, the company "Evritania" was a subsidiary of the Agricultural Bank and functioned as a mediator in public funding programmes related to rural tourism and other activities.

The programme was approved, and according to employees of the local government, the Liapis family has used all the loopholes of law and redesigned the luxury house in Megalo Chorio, utilizing funds, but the house has not operated as a guest house for even one day.