Awka/Abuja – September 16/17, 2026 – Former Anambra State Governor and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate Peter Obi on Wednesday released his official handover document from March 17, 2014, to challenge claims by the Charles Soludo-led Anambra State Government that his administration left the state with outstanding loans and other financial liabilities.
The document, published by Dr Yunusa Tanko, Interim National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, provides a summary of Anambra State’s financial position as at the close of business on the day Obi handed over to his successor, Willie Obiano. It indicates a net positive balance of over ₦86 billion.
The release came amid a renewed public dispute between Obi and the Soludo administration over the state’s financial inheritance more than a decade after Obi left office.
Earlier, Anambra State officials, including Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation Dr Law Mefor and Commissioner for Finance Izuchukwu Okafor, stated that the current government was still servicing external loans contracted or inherited during previous administrations, including Obi’s. Mefor said eight external loans remained outstanding when Obi left office on March 17, 2014, with a combined balance of about $92.35 million — equivalent to roughly ₦127.4 billion at the official exchange rate as of June 30, 2026.
The government also disputed Obi’s longstanding claim that he left more than ₦75 billion in savings and investments, as well as about ₦2.13 billion in an ecological fund account at First Bank (Account No. 2018779464) specifically for an erosion control project.
Obi has consistently rejected these assertions. In recent statements, he insisted that at the point of handover he had settled all due salaries, pensions, gratuities and certified contractor payments. He said his administration had cleared more than ₦35 billion in historical gratuities and arrears accumulated before and during his tenure. He further maintained that the ecological fund was left intact for his successor because it was tied to a specific project and released only months before the end of his term.
“As at the day I left office, I was not owing any salary, pension, or gratuity… I was not owing any supplier or contractor that had executed his job and his documents processed,” Obi stated. He has also vowed to end his 2027 presidential campaign if evidence is produced to prove he left unpaid obligations.
The handover note released on Wednesday is presented by Obi’s camp as documentary evidence supporting his position of a net positive financial standing at the end of his eight-year tenure (2006–2014). Supporters argue it demonstrates prudent financial management, while the Soludo government maintains that long-term external loan obligations and other liabilities have continued to affect the state’s finances.
The dispute has roots in the 2014 transition. The Obiano administration later claimed it inherited substantial project-related liabilities, a position Obi’s team has always contested. The issue resurfaced after Soludo assumed office in 2022 and has intensified in the lead-up to the 2027 elections, with both sides trading detailed financial figures and demands for documentary proof.
As of Thursday, the Anambra State Government had not issued a detailed response to the specific figures contained in the newly released handover document. The exchange continues to dominate political discourse, with Obi’s supporters viewing the release as a strong rebuttal and government officials insisting that debt-servicing records and Debt Management Office data tell a different story.
The controversy underscores ongoing debates about transparency in public finance and the long-term impact of past borrowing decisions in Anambra State.
About the Author
