Oshiomhole Questions Obi’s $156m Savings, Disputes No-Debt Claim
Senator Adams Oshiomhole has challenged former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi to explain how he accumulated $156 million in savings during his tenure, questioning how the funds were obtained when the Federal Government paid states’ allocations in naira. Oshiomhole, who represents Edo North in the Senate and previously served as governor of Edo State and national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), raised the questions during an interview with Symfoni TV published on Thursday. He said he and Obi were members of the National Economic Council, chaired by the vice president, when governors proposed receiving federal allocations in dollars because of differences between official and market exchange rates. According to Oshiomhole, the Federal Government rejected the proposal, insisting that the naira was Nigeria’s recognised currency. He questioned whether Obi had converted naira allocations into dollars through the market before saving the funds for Anambra State, insisting that the savings claim was untrue. Oshiomhole also cited the state’s current governor, Chukwuma Soludo, describing him as an authority on financial matters because of his background as an economist and his former position as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. The senator further disputed Obi’s claim that he did not borrow while in office, arguing that facilities obtained from the World Bank, including budget-support funding, could still constitute loans even when repayment was deferred. Drawing on his experience as Edo governor, Oshiomhole said such facilities remained recorded obligations that future administrations would eventually have to repay.
Oshiomhole argued that repayment moratoriums could allow an administration to leave office before its loans became due, leaving successor governments responsible for settling the obligations. He questioned Obi’s position that loans were not debts simply because repayment did not begin immediately, adding that the liabilities remained in the books. The senator also disputed Obi’s account of an event organised by the Director-General of the Debt Management Office to recognise the former governor for allegedly not applying for loan approvals. Oshiomhole described the account as “another lie”, although the interview excerpt provided no further details to substantiate the allegation. Obi, who governed Anambra State from 2006 to 2014, has maintained that he did not leave the state burdened with debt. He reiterated his position in a recent interview on Arise Television while responding to allegations that his administration left outstanding loans and liabilities. However, Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Law Mefor, previously claimed that Obi left $123.77 million in debt at the end of his tenure. Oshiomhole’s latest remarks have renewed political debate over Obi’s financial record, including the distinction between accumulated savings, foreign-currency holdings and outstanding loan obligations, as well as the management of public funds and the financial legacy of previous administrations.
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