Presidential candidate of the New Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has rejected claims that he left Anambra State with $123.77 million in debt when he left office as governor in March 2014.
Obi, who spoke amid the ongoing public debate over Anambra State’s debt profile, said he had remained silent in recent days while mourning his late elder brother and friend, Chief Okey Ezeibe.
He said the controversy should not distract attention from the economic hardship and other challenges facing Nigerians.
“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,” Obi said.
He also dismissed suggestions of a political disagreement with Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, saying he had no interest in returning to the governorship.
“I 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 amended,” he stated.
On the debt controversy, Obi said he did not borrow money or issue bonds on behalf of Anambra State during his tenure.
“As Governor of Anambra State, I did not approach any financial institution to borrow funds or issue a bond on behalf of the state,” he said.
He cited the then Director-General of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Abraham Nwankwo, who, according to Obi, had publicly stated at his farewell ceremony that he was the only governor during Nwankwo’s 10-year tenure who had not approached the DMO for a loan facility.
Obi further maintained that he left office without unpaid salaries, gratuities or pensions, adding that the state also owed no contractor or supplier whose completed work had been verified and certified by the government.
Addressing the World Bank and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) facilities linked to Anambra, Obi said the funds were concessionary development-support financing secured by the Federal Government for states selected to implement specific programmes.
“These are concessionary development-support funds secured by the Federal Government for states selected by it to address specific needs. Repayment is spread over 25 to 30 years,” he explained.
According to Obi, the Anambra government should distinguish between the total amount approved under a multiyear development programme, the amount actually drawn during his administration and the balance outstanding when he handed over power on March 17, 2014.
He accused the state government of combining those separate categories and presenting the resulting $123.77 million as “loans left by Peter Obi.”
“That is an incorrect application of public-sector accounting,” he said.
Obi said the eight facilities cited were mainly World Bank and IFAD development programmes negotiated by the Federal Government, with participating states accessing the funds through subsidiary arrangements.
“They were not conventional commercial loans that I personally secured during my tenure,” he stated, while acknowledging that Anambra had repayment obligations under the various facilities.
He also questioned what he described as a contradiction between the state government’s figures and DMO records.
“The clearest contradiction appears in the government’s own figures,” Obi said, noting that the government reportedly put the original facilities at approximately $123.77 million, with $92.35 million outstanding as of June 2026.
He said DMO records, however, showed Anambra’s total external debt at approximately $18 million when he assumed office in March 2006, about $30 million when he left office in March 2014, and approximately $45.15 million as of December 31, 2014.
“The 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 year,” he said.
Obi also claimed that he left more than $150 million as the dollar component of his investment in Anambra State when he left office, saying the funds could have generated substantial annual income for the state.
“On the day I left office, I left more than US$150 million as the dollar component of my investment in Anambra State as governor,” he stated.
According to him, the investment was expected to generate approximately $10 million annually for the state. He argued that, over 13 years, the proceeds could have amounted to about $130 million.
Obi further estimated that, if the funds had remained untouched and compound interest and additional income were included, they could have grown to approximately $335 million.
He maintained that the figures demonstrated the financial position in which he left the state.
“Let me reiterate that, when I left office, I left Anambra State in a strong financial position—the strongest of any state in Nigeria—and I stand by that position,” Obi said.
The former Anambra governor concluded by saying he would not continue exchanging words over his tenure in the state, stressing that his attention would remain on the challenges confronting Nigerians.
“My focus will now be on issues affecting the suffering Nigerian masses, which is the reason for my presidential ambition,” he said.
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