Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and former governor of Anambra State, has challenged the state government to provide evidence that his administration left behind unpaid debts, including a ₦2 billion ecological fund, contractor liabilities and arrears of salaries, gratuities and pensions.
Obi, in a statement on Tuesday, described the claims as “completely false”, insisting that his administration cleared outstanding liabilities inherited from previous governments before handing over power.
According to him, more than ₦35 billion in historical gratuities and arrears accumulated over several years were liquidated during his tenure.
He said the state had no outstanding obligations in salaries, gratuities or pensions when he left office, adding that contractors whose projects had been duly executed and certified were also fully paid.
“At the point of handover, the state owed nothing in salaries, gratuities, or pensions, nor did we owe anything to any contractor for projects duly executed and certified,” he said.
Addressing the ₦2 billion ecological fund cited by the state government, Obi said the money was released by the Federal Government about three months before the end of his administration to tackle the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis.
He said rather than spend the money indiscriminately before leaving office, he chose to preserve it for his successor because it was earmarked for a specific purpose.
“The ₦2 billion ecological fund in question was released barely three months before the end of my tenure for the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis,” Obi said.
“Despite pressure to spend the money, I refused, insisting that it should be left for my successor because government is a continuum and the funds were tied to a specific project.”
Obi further claimed that the money remained untouched in a First Bank account, which he said had a balance of more than ₦2.13 billion.
He stressed that funds reserved for specific projects were not part of the more than ₦75 billion in savings he said his administration left behind.
The former governor said it was therefore misleading to portray such funds as debts or liabilities inherited by the succeeding administration.
He challenged anyone disputing his account to produce evidence, offering an unusually emphatic political pledge if the allegations could be substantiated.
“If anybody can establish anything to the contrary, I will stop campaigning,” Obi said.
The fresh exchange is likely to deepen the political dispute over the financial record of successive administrations in Anambra, with Obi's record in office remaining a major component of his argument for fiscal discipline and accountable governance as he campaigns for the presidency.
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