Former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has said he has no disagreement with his successor, Chukwuma Soludo, declaring that he will not seek the governorship of any state again.
Obi made the clarification on Friday while responding to issues that had recently generated public discussion, including the controversy over the financial obligations associated with projects implemented during his tenure as Anambra governor.
The former governor, who said he had remained silent in recent days because he was mourning his late elder brother and friend, Chief Okey Ezeibe, said he was not interested in returning to the governorship, even if the Constitution was amended.
โI wish to assure the public that I have no disagreement with my dear elder brother, Governor Soludo, or with any governor in Nigeria. I am not seeking the office of governor in any state, and I will not seek that position again, even if the Constitution is amendedโ, he stated.
Obi also appealed to governors to allow presidential candidates and other contestants to campaign freely in their states, irrespective of their political affiliations. He said, โAccordingly, I appeal to governors to support whichever presidential candidate they choose while also permitting and assisting other presidential candidates and contenders for other offices to campaign freely and without interruption in their states. Ultimately, voters should be allowed to determine whom they wish to serve them.โ
He added that political actors should focus on the challenges confronting Nigerians rather than engage in distractions.
โOn the Anambra debt question, I have remained silent over the past few days because I have been grieving the loss of my very dear elder brother and friend, Chief Okey Ezeibe. However, the time has come for me to address some of the matters that have occupied public discussion in recent days. I respectfully urge everyone to concentrate on the existential challenges confronting Nigeria and the hardships endured by its citizens, rather than on the needless distractions that have become widespread in our politics.โ
His comments came amid a disagreement between the Anambra State Government and Obi over external borrowings associated with projects undertaken during his administration. https://punchng.com/anambra-govt-counters-obi-alleges-n127bn-124m-debt/
The state government had said eight external borrowings linked to projects during Obiโs tenure had a combined contracted value of $123.77m, with $92.35m outstanding as of June 30, 2026, based on figures from the Debt Management Office.
Obi rejected the characterisation of the facilities as โdebt owed by Peter Obiโ, saying they were primarily World Bank and International Fund for Agricultural Development development programmes negotiated by the Federal Government and accessed by participating states through subsidiary arrangements.
He said the figures being cited should be separated into the amount approved, the amount actually drawn and the balance outstanding when he left office.ย โThe government has combined these distinct categories, added them together, and described the resulting US$123.77 million as โloans left by Peter Obi.โ That is an incorrect application of public-sector accountingโ, he argued.
Obi further maintained that he did not personally approach any financial institution to borrow funds or issue a bond on behalf of the state. He said, โRegarding the multilateral funding inaccurately described as โdebt owed by Peter Obiโ in Anambra State, I wish to state unequivocally, as Governor of Anambra State, I did not approach any financial institution to borrow funds or issue a bond on behalf of the state.
โIndeed, at his farewell ceremony, the then Director-General of the DMO, Abraham Nwankwo, appointed me chairman and declared that, during his 10 years in office, I was the only state governor who had not approached him for a loan facility.โ
He also said his administration left no unpaid salaries, gratuities or pensions, and no verified debts owed to contractors or suppliers. โWhen I left office, the Anambra State Government owed no unpaid salaries, gratuities, or pensions. Neither did it owe any contractor or supplier who had completed work that the government had verified and certified.โ
Obi said the issues surrounding the development financing should be considered in the context of how the facilities were approved, accessed and repaid.
โThe eight facilities identified were primarily World Bank and IFAD development programs negotiated by the Federal Government, with participating states receiving access to the funds through subsidiary arrangements. They were not conventional commercial loans that I personally secured during my tenure. This does not suggest that Anambra had no repayment responsibilities; rather, each facility must be examined in light of its approval, effectiveness, drawdown, and repayment recordโ, he explained.
He also cited Debt Management Office figures for Anambraโs external debt at different points, questioning how the $123.77m figure attributed to his administration was arrived at.
โThe clearest contradiction appears in the governmentโs own figures. It states that the original facilities amounted to approximately US$123.77 million and that US$92.35 million remained outstanding in June 2026. However, the DMOโs published records showed Anambraโs total external debt at approximately US$18 million when I began my tenure in March 2006, about US$30 million in March 2014, when I left office, and approximately US$45.15 million as of 31 December 2014, nine months after my departure.
โThe Anambra State Government must therefore clarify how a state whose recorded external debt was about US$30 million in March 2014 and US$45.15 million in December 2014 could supposedly have inherited US$123.77 million from Peter Obi, who left office in March of that same yearโ, he concluded.
Source:ย punchng.com
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