The Anambra State Government has disputed former Governor Peter Obi’s claim that he left office in 2014 without outstanding debts or financial liabilities, releasing details of loans it said were obtained or inherited during his administration.
The government also challenged Obi’s claim that he left ₦2.13 billion in an ecological fund account for his successor, saying a certified statement of the account he identified showed no record of the money.
The Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Law Mefor, made the claims in a statement issued on Wednesday titled, “Gov Peter Obi and Record of Public Debt in Anambra: Facts Beyond Propaganda and Lies.”
Mefor described Obi’s claims about the state’s debt profile as “wild” and “verifiably false.”
The commissioner said eight external loans obtained during or inherited into Obi’s administration remained outstanding, with a combined balance of $92.35 million, equivalent to ₦127.37 billion, as of June 30, 2026.
Anambra Govt. Breaks Down Obi Loan
According to the statement, the original value of the eight loans was about $123.77 million.
He said the loans were linked to projects covering malaria control, Fadama development, healthcare, education, community development, erosion control and value-chain development.
Among them was an additional $48.33 million financing for the Malaria Control Booster Project, of which $37.34 million remained outstanding as of June 30, 2026.
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The government also listed a $37.89 million Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project loan, with an outstanding balance of $34.86 million.
Mefor said the current administration was servicing the outstanding obligations.
“Evidently, HE Peter Obi borrowed for malaria, erosion control, education, healthcare, etc. So far, this government pays hundreds of millions of Naira every month to service these debts and we are not complaining,” he said.
“It is good for Anambra once we can show the impacts.”
The government said borrowing was not inherently wrong, arguing that governments could legitimately obtain loans for viable projects and human-capital development.
It said the key issue was whether such borrowing and expenditure could be properly accounted for.
Government Disputes Claim on Salaries, Pensions
The Soludo administration also rejected Obi’s assertion that he left office without owing salaries, pensions and gratuities.
Mefor claimed that the current government inherited and cleared about N22 billion in gratuity arrears owed to retired state and local government employees and teachers.
He also alleged that salary arrears owed to workers of the defunct Anambra State Water Corporation remained unresolved during Obi’s tenure and were only being addressed by the present administration.
“This administration has negotiated a settlement and already paid the first two instalments of the agreed three instalment payments,” the statement said.
The government further alleged that some primary school teachers had salary, pension and gratuity arrears dating back to the administration of former Governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju.
According to Mefor, Obi’s administration verified 16 months of salary arrears and agreed to pay them in instalments but settled only five months.
“This administration has set up a committee headed by the Head of Service to finalise a new verification for us to pay,” he said.
Mefor directly challenged Obi’s claim that he owed no one when he left office.
“So, Your Excellency, you owed salaries, pensions and gratuities. Many of these people are still alive and can testify,” he said.
“It is not good to speak loudly without facts or with fabricated figures.”
N2.13bn Ecological Fund Claim
The most contentious issue in the latest exchange is Obi’s claim that he left more than N2.13 billion in an account belonging to the state as an ecological fund.
Obi had identified the account as First Bank account number 2018779464 and said the money was released shortly before the end of his tenure to address the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis.
He said he deliberately left the funds untouched for his successor because the money was earmarked for a specific project, stressing that “government is a continuum.”
However, the Anambra Government said it obtained a certified statement of the account and found no evidence that N2.13 billion was ever deposited into it.
Mefor said the account identified by Obi was an internally generated revenue consolidated account, not an ecological fund account.
“First, the account is an Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) Consolidated Revenue Account, and NOT an ecological fund account,” he said.
“Second, from 2011 when the account was opened until date, there has never been any such amount—whether as inflow or balance—in the account.”
The commissioner asked Obi to explain where the money was kept if it was not deposited into the account he identified.
“Since HE Peter Obi raised the issue and admitted that his government received such an amount and it is evident that no such amount ever entered into the account that he cited, it behoves on HE Peter Obi to tell us where exactly his government kept the money or is the money missing?” Mefor asked.
Dispute Over N75bn Savings
The state government also rejected Obi’s claim that his administration left more than N75 billion in savings for successive governments.
Mefor described the figure as part of what he called “nebulous creative accounting” and said the claim had previously been disputed.
The commissioner, however, did not provide a detailed breakdown of the government’s position on the N75 billion figure in the statement.
The latest exchange has renewed the dispute over the financial records of the Obi administration, which handed over power to former Governor Willie Obiano in March 2014.
Obi Denied Allegation Of Unpaid Salaries
Obi had earlier denied allegations that his administration left behind unpaid salaries, pensions, gratuities, contractors’ debts and other liabilities.
He said his administration cleared more than N35 billion in historical gratuities and arrears before leaving office.
“If anybody can establish anything to the contrary, I will stop campaigning,” Obi said.
The former governor has continued to challenge the Anambra Government to produce evidence for claims about debts and liabilities allegedly inherited from his administration.
The latest controversy comes as Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), prepares for the 2027 general elections.
The Anambra Government said its latest statement was intended to place its account of the state’s finances on record, insisting that public records should determine the facts surrounding the disputed figures.
Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.