By: Odeh Favour Adiya
The Presidency has reacted to the ongoing dispute between the former Governor of Anambra State and presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, and the Anambra State Government over the state’s financial liabilities.
In a post on X on Wednesday, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, challenged Obi to follow through on his pledge to quit the presidential race after claims about his debt-free legacy were disproved.
Onanuga noted that the former governor had previously vowed to step down if anyone established that his financial records were incorrect.
He wrote, “Peter Obi claimed he left Anambra with a clean slate of debt and even threatened to quit the presidential race if his claims were proven otherwise.”
The presidential spokesman added that the Anambra State Government had confronted Obi with details concerning liabilities allegedly left behind by his administration.
“Now, the Anambra government has confronted him with facts and figures showing he owed Water Corporation workers, teachers, and pension and gratuities, and had also borrowed for frivolous things,” Onanuga said.
He further asked, “The ball is back in his court. Will he follow through on his threat by quitting the race?”
The Presidency’s intervention comes after a fresh response by the Anambra State Government to Obi’s Tuesday denial regarding inherited debts, which include a N2bn ecological fund, contractor liabilities, and unpaid salaries, gratuities, and pensions.
Obi had maintained that his administration cleared over N35bn in historical gratuities and arrears, insisting that he left office without outstanding salary, pension, or gratuity obligations.
Addressing the controversy surrounding the ecological fund, Obi asserted that over N2.13bn remained untouched in a First Bank account dedicated to the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis.
However, in a statement issued on Wednesday, the Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Law Mefor, disputed Obi’s claim.
Mefor stated that the account identified by Obi was actually an Internally Generated Revenue Consolidated Revenue Account and not an ecological fund account.
The commissioner revealed that the government obtained a certified printout of the bank account to verify the claims.
Mefor stated that “from 2011 when the account was opened until date, there has never been any such amount whether as inflow or balance in the account.”
Recalling his initial stance, Obi had challenged anyone to disprove his financial record, stating, “If anybody can establish anything to the contrary, I will stop campaigning.”
