The Vice-Presidential Candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party in the 2019 Presidential election, Mr. Peter Obi has stated his own side of the story in the Pandora Papers allegation.
Obi, a former Anambra State Governor, was accused by The Pandora Papers project, a part of the global International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), but the Onitsha-based politician denied any wrongdoing while noting that he maintained transparency when he held sway as the Anambra State Chief Executive.
In an interview with Maazi Tochukwu Ezeoke of Njenje Media, the former Bank Executive revealed what transpired before and after he became governor while insisting he maintained decency in governance.
In his words:
“When you have a situation like this, I use myself as an example, Peter Obi’s name is mentioned, what you need to do is to invite Peter Obi for an explanation of why he is mentioned in so so and so. Like in my own case, I lived in the UK from 1990 until I became the governor of Anambra State, and from 1992 to 1993, on the advice of Lyolds Bank ( I still have the documents of advice), we started an investment company in one of the Lyolds subsidiaries on their own planning. So what we were doing was investing small savings of ours in that Investment Company, as well as some of the borrowed monies, was invested in different investments portfolios.”
Obi noted that those who formulated the law barring public officers from operating foreign accounts did not take into cognizance those who lived and operated foreign accounts outside the country before coming home to seek public office.
“When I became governor in 2006, what I did was to convert that into (of course it became a trust company), the law is clear in Nigeria that as a public office holder, you are not allowed to operate a foreign account, that law I must say those who have formulated it, they don’t put into the account or envisage a Nigerian living in the foreign country coming to work in Nigeria. The law if I would say thinking about those who formulated this is about Nigerians going to open a foreign account when you are here.”
He added: “However, the law was also clear, it didn’t say throw away everything you have overseas because you are coming back, otherwise we would have sold our properties. So as at that time, I clearly own, fully paid three houses in the UK and these were houses in good areas of the country, and this trust was formulated, that is it. It continued until it was mentioned, so for me, it is a very simple thing, you go and say like I have mentioned before, if you go into this trust, from the day I became governor till date, there was no single investment into this trust, nothing. So it remained what it is there. Just like there is no new property bought since then till date.”
On if he was questioned by the Nigerian antigraft authorities over the indictment, the former governor replied in the affirmative but noted his displeasure with the way and manner he was questioned.
“Several of them (anti-graft agencies) contacted me, but I also feel persecuted and trying to ruin my business because rather than ask me how I governed the state, how I was Chairman of a bank, people are interested in, how did you live in the UK, how did Lyolds Bank work with you, how did you buy a house in 1997. For God’s sake in 1997, I didn’t have any public office portfolio, I was virtually going to be asked now, how did you marry your wife.
No, let us limit ourselves to where people should be interested in serving their people. I was entrusted the resources of Anambra State from March 2006 to March 2014, go and investigate it. I left 156 million dollars in the bank, I had the best road network, I won the Bill Gates prize for health, I had the best prize in education, I won the MDG prize, the best-performing state in MDG, I was invited to speak on MDG in the United States of my experience, I can go on and on and on and say what we did and then we left money, we were in the right direction.”
He further advised the public and those saddled with the anti-corruption mandate on ways to put into scrutiny actions of public officers.
“So it’s for you to ask questions, it’s for you to know what to do, these are the ways to knock, for you to investigate. What is lacking in Nigeria, is that a lot of people sit down and say this man was governor from here to this, when we talk about corruption when we talk about mismanagement of resources, it’s strictly and that is why we don’t mention corruption very well, it is strictly what you do with entrusted public power and resources, because that is what is critical.”
“By the time you say I am the chairman of Fidelity or anything, I was managing an entrusted public asset, as at the time I was governor, I am entrusted with public assets. Your investigation should be on this, how was it managed? My brother, let me tell you, no thief, no thief, I repeat three times, no thief or somebody who is not a person of integrity would see what he can steal and leave it. That is why when you go to church, they will tell you to mind your phone because the thief that came to church actually came to worship but if he sees the opportunity to steal, he will still do it. I left 156 million dollars and over 40 billion naira, I invested over 20 billion in investment, I had the opportunity to convert that money into anything and it won’t be there, it’s as simple as ABC. I still say in the whole of Africa, not even in Nigeria, no state has done that quantum of savings. I can go on and on. So if you must get what I did for 8 years or find anybody who says he was sitting down with Peter to say, do this or do this is sick. But the company I ran while I was living in the UK is there, I can show you a piece of evidence that this company received an overdraft of over 7 million dollars from Lyolds Bank. If you live in the UK, I am sorry to use this, if you are a black man, you are a suspect, if you are a Nigerian, you are a double suspect, so for me to live in the UK where Lyolds Bank gives me 7 million dollars overdraft, on a normal day, actually my name should be submitted for sainthood because living in the UK as a black is not an easy thing. I lived there, although it’s getting better now.”
“When you hear this happened, investigate the person based on where he was entrusted with public power and public resources”, he submitted.
