Soludo Has Cut Anambra’s Debt By 83%, Finance Commissioner Says
By AMAKA OHAFIAH
Anambra’s Inherited Debt Burden
THE Anambra State Government says it is still servicing loans and other financial obligations inherited from previous administrations, including those of former governors Peter Obi and Willie Obiano.
The state Commissioner for Finance, Izuchukwu Okafor, disclosed this during a Ndi Anambra podcast moderated by Ejimofor Opara, a special assistant to Governor Charles Soludo on new media.
A video of the discussion was posted on Anambra State New Media’s Facebook page on Monday.
Government Explains Loan Repayments
The discussion centred on budget performance reports showing that the state continues to service loans despite the Soludo administration’s repeated position that it has not borrowed from commercial banks since taking office.
Okafor maintained that the current administration had not taken new commercial bank loans.
“It’s on record, you know, that this administration has not borrowed a kobo from any commercial bank since the inception of this administration,” he said.
However, he explained that the state continues to make repayments on loans secured by earlier administrations.
According to him, the repayments appear as deductions from the state’s Federation Account Allocation Committee funds every month.
“Every month during our FAC meetings, and when you see the schedule of FAC, you will notice there were substantial, significant deductions from our own FAC because of loans previously borrowed by previous administrations,” he said.
Obi, Obiano Loans Cited
The commissioner specifically linked some of the inherited loans to the administrations of Mr Obi and Mr Obiano, as well as those of other former governors.
“These loans were borrowed, you know, even during the time of Peter Obi and Willie Obiano, (and other) past governors,” he said.
The statement is significant because Mr. Obi, who governed Anambra from 2010 to 2014, has maintained a different position about the state’s financial position when he left office.
Government Claims 83% Debt Reduction
Okafor said the Soludo administration had substantially reduced the state’s overall debt burden without taking new commercial loans.
He claimed that Anambra had reduced its debt by more than 83 per cent.
“We have been able to manage the debt, the state debt, very well, that we have brought it down by more than 83 per cent as of today. We’ve been able to repay back most of these loans,” he said.
He also said the government had cleared several legacy obligations that accumulated under previous administrations.
These, he said, included unpaid contracts, gratuity arrears and pension arrears.
The commissioner further described the state’s domestic debt as being at a “near-zero balance”.
External Debt Still Being Serviced
Okafor distinguished the state’s domestic obligations from its external debts.
He said some external loan repayments were automatically deducted from federal allocations due to Anambra under the terms attached to the facilities.
“Before they remit Anambra’s own allocation, they will deduct it as such, because most of them, World Bank loans and other loans, they committed,” he said.
He added that the current administration had recently paid off one of the debts inherited from previous governments.
Peter Obi’s Different Account
Mr. Obi has previously disputed suggestions that he left Anambra with unpaid debts.
The former governor, who is now the 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, has repeatedly said he did not owe any individual or institution when he left office.
He has also challenged Nigerians to investigate his claims.
In 2022, Mr. Obi said his administration left $50 million each in Access Bank, the defunct Diamond Bank and Fidelity Bank.
According to him, the deposits amounted to $150 million and attracted an interest rate of at least 6.5 per cent.
He estimated that the investments would have been worth about ₦60 billion at the time he made the claim.
The Unresolved Financial Debate
The conflicting positions put the state’s debt history back into the political spotlight.
The Soludo administration says it inherited loans and other obligations and has spent part of its tenure repaying them.
Mr. Obi, however, has maintained that he left office without owing anybody or any institution and has pointed to the funds he said remained in the state’s accounts.
Resolving the disagreement ultimately requires access to official debt records, loan agreements, repayment schedules and audited financial statements covering the relevant administrations.
For now, the Anambra government insists that its administration has avoided new commercial borrowing while reducing the financial obligations it inherited from its predecessors.
