By AMAKA OHAFIAH

Peter Obi vs Soludo: Anambra Debt Dispute Moves From Claims to Documents

THE long-running political differences between former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and Governor Charles Soludo have taken a new turn over the state’s debt records.

What began with allegations that Obi left debts behind has developed into a public exchange involving loan documents, ecological funds, unpaid liabilities and competing accounts of the state’s finances.

The dispute has emerged during the build-up to the 2027 presidential election, in which Obi is the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress.

How the Dispute Started

Anambra Commissioner for Finance Izuchukwu Okafor triggered the latest controversy during a podcast.

He alleged that the Soludo administration was still repaying loans and other debts incurred by Obi and previous administrations.

He also claimed that Obi left about ₦2.1 billion in ecological funds unaccounted for.

Obi rejected the allegations.

The former governor said he did not leave behind unpaid salaries, pensions or gratuities that were the responsibility of the state.

He also maintained that contractors whose projects had been executed and properly certified had been paid.

Obi’s Account of His Record

Obi said his administration inherited substantial arrears but worked to clear them.

According to him, his government liquidated historical gratuity and other arrears worth more than ₦35 billion.

He said that, by the time he left office, the state owed neither workers nor contractors whose claims had been properly processed.

He also said his administration left more than ₦75 billion in savings.

Obi therefore challenged the Soludo administration to prove that he left the state in debt.

He said he would stop campaigning for the presidency if the government established that the allegations were true.

The Ecological Funds Question

A major part of the dispute concerns about ₦2.1 billion in ecological funds.

Obi said the Federal Government released the money to Anambra shortly before he left office.

He explained that he did not spend it because the funds were intended to address erosion at Oko and Umuchiana.

According to his account, the money remained intact for the incoming administration to use for the designated purpose.

He identified a First Bank account and said it had a balance of more than ₦2.13 billion.

Obi argued that the account details provided an opportunity for the state government to verify his claim.

Calls for Proof

Following Obi’s challenge, some Nigerians called on the Anambra government to provide documentary evidence.

Afam Achebe questioned the continued political exchanges between Soludo and Obi and urged the governor to substantiate the debt allegations.

Kaa, another commentator, similarly called for the release of the relevant bank transaction records.

He argued that the documents should settle the disagreement over the ecological funds.

Public affairs analyst Darlington Agomuo also urged Soludo to accept Obi’s challenge.

However, these reactions represent the views of individual commentators rather than independent findings on the underlying financial dispute.

Government Produces Loan Records

The Anambra government subsequently released what it described as records of loans incurred during Obi’s administration.

Commissioner for Information Law Mefor said the documents showed that Obi’s administration contracted eight external loans between 2007 and 2013.

The loans had a combined value of about $123.7 million.

According to the state government, $92.35 million remained outstanding as of June 30, 2026.

The government calculated the outstanding amount at approximately ₦127.37 billion using the applicable exchange rate.

The state said the figures came from the Debt Management Office’s latest report on Anambra’s debt position.

The Projects Behind the Borrowings

The loans, according to the government, were tied to development projects.

They included malaria control, agricultural development, healthcare, education and erosion management.

The government also listed the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project among the programmes associated with the borrowing.

Mefor said the existence of the loans did not mean borrowing itself was wrong.

He argued that governments could legitimately borrow to finance viable development projects.

The government’s position is that the issue is the outstanding obligations rather than the mere fact that Anambra borrowed money.

Another Dispute Over Arrears

The Soludo administration also challenged Obi’s account of inherited liabilities.

Mefor said the current government had cleared about ₦22 billion in inherited gratuity arrears involving retired state and local government workers and teachers.

He also cited outstanding salary obligations involving workers of the defunct Water Corporation.

According to him, the Soludo administration negotiated a settlement and had already paid two instalments.

The commissioner further alleged that salary arrears involving primary school teachers had not been fully cleared during Obi’s tenure.

Obi’s position remains that his administration cleared the obligations it was responsible for and did not leave the state owing workers or certified contractors.

What the Bank Records Could Establish

The First Bank account has become one of the most contested elements of the dispute.

Obi identified the account as the location of the ecological funds.

The Anambra government, however, said its certified account statement showed something different.

Mefor said the account was an Internally Generated Revenue Consolidated Revenue Account.

He further claimed that the account never recorded the amount Obi cited as an ecological-fund balance or inflow.

The disagreement makes the underlying bank records potentially central to resolving that particular aspect of the controversy.

Beyond Political Claims

The dispute now involves two competing narratives about Anambra’s financial position.

Obi says he left office without debt to workers or contractors and with substantial savings.

The Soludo administration says records from the state’s debt profile show outstanding loans contracted during Obi’s tenure and disputes his claims about unpaid liabilities and the ecological fund.

The government’s latest figures put the outstanding balance of the eight external loans at about ₦127.37 billion as of June 2026.

The key issue is therefore not simply whether Anambra borrowed money during Obi’s tenure.

It is also whether those loans were still legally attributable to his administration at the point of handover, what obligations remained at that time, how exchange-rate movements affected today’s naira value and what the state’s contemporaneous financial and handover records show.

The 2027 Political Context

The timing has added political weight to the disagreement.

Obi is preparing for the 2027 presidential election, while Soludo continues to lead Anambra.

The dispute has consequently become part of a wider argument over Obi’s record as governor and the performance of the state’s successive administrations.

For now, neither side has accepted the other’s account.

Obi has called for proof and tied his campaign to the outcome of that challenge.

The Anambra government has responded with loan records and additional allegations about unpaid liabilities.

The documents have therefore moved the controversy beyond competing political statements. The remaining question is how the records from the relevant periods will be reconciled and independently verified.