Anambra Debt: APC Demands Obi Withdraw from 2027 Race
The All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council has challenged the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, to fulfil his pledge to withdraw from the 2027 presidential contest if it is established that he left Anambra State with outstanding liabilities. In a statement issued on Monday by its spokesman, Dele Alake, the council relied on figures released by the Anambra State Government, which it said showed that Obi’s administration contracted $123.77 million in external loans during his eight-year tenure. The council also cited the state government’s claim that about $4.05 billion was spent during the period and that eight external loan facilities linked to projects in healthcare, education, erosion control and malaria management remained when Obi handed over power in March 2014. According to the state government, successive administrations have continued servicing the facilities. The APC council maintained that borrowing for development was not inherently wrong but argued that the reported loans conflicted with Obi’s public claim that he left Anambra without a debt burden.
The council further alleged that some workers were owed salaries during Obi’s tenure, referring to a 2006 memo it attributed to his then Chief of Staff, Chuks Ileogbunam, concerning unpaid wages of Water Corporation employees. It said the issue contradicted a campaign promise allegedly made by Obi to resign as governor if workers were not paid as and when due. The APC campaign body consequently urged him to acknowledge what it described as misrepresentations and quit the 2027 race. Obi, however, has rejected the allegations, maintaining that his administration cleared more than ₦35 billion in inherited gratuities and arrears and left office without outstanding salary, pension or gratuity obligations. He also disputed claims concerning an ecological fund, while Anambra’s Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, challenged his account of a ₦2.13 billion First Bank balance. Obi had earlier said he would stop campaigning if anyone proved that his account of the state’s finances was inaccurate. The controversy remains a dispute involving competing claims by the former governor, the state government and the APC campaign council.
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