The political battle over Anambra State’s finances has escalated, with the Presidency challenging former governor and 2027 presidential candidate Peter Obi to honour his pledge to stop campaigning if it is established that his administration left behind unpaid debts.
The challenge was issued on Wednesday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, amid a fresh exchange between Obi and the Anambra State Government over loans, financial obligations and funds allegedly left behind when he handed over power in 2014.
Onanuga said Obi had previously maintained that he left Anambra without outstanding debts and had indicated that he would abandon his presidential campaign if evidence emerged to the contrary. 
“Now, the Anambra government has confronted him with facts and figures,” Onanuga said, according to reports of his statement, adding that the state government had raised claims involving obligations to workers, teachers, pensioners and contractors.
“The ball is back in his court. Will he follow through on his threat by quitting the race?” he asked.
Anambra Government Releases Debt Records
The Presidency’s intervention followed a detailed response by the Anambra State Government to Obi’s denial of claims that his administration left behind financial liabilities.
Anambra Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Law Mefor, said the state had released records relating to external loans and other obligations allegedly linked to previous administrations.
The state government said records showed that Anambra inherited external loans associated with Obi’s tenure, with reports putting the outstanding balance at about $123.77 million. The government also disputed Obi’s account of an alleged ₦2.13 billion ecological fund.
According to Mefor, the First Bank account identified by Obi as the repository of the ecological funds was not an ecological fund account and, based on the certified records cited by the government, did not contain the amount Obi claimed he left behind.
The Anambra government has also maintained that the state continues to service financial obligations incurred under previous administrations.
Obi Rejects Allegations
Obi has strongly rejected the allegations, describing claims that he left unpaid salaries, pensions, gratuities and contractor liabilities as false.
The former governor said his administration cleared more than ₦35 billion in historical gratuities and arrears and maintained that, at the point of handover, the state had no outstanding salaries, pensions or gratuities.
He also disputed the characterization of the ecological funds as a loan.
According to Obi, the money was released shortly before the end of his tenure for the Oko/Umuchiana erosion-control project. He said he deliberately left the funds untouched for his successor because they were tied to the project.
Obi further maintained that the funds were held in a First Bank account with a balance of more than ₦2.13 billion and were separate from the more than ₦75 billion in savings he said his administration left behind.
He challenged the Anambra Government to produce evidence contradicting his account, saying he would stop campaigning if it could establish that he left the alleged debts.
Fresh Political Flashpoint
The competing accounts have transformed what began as a dispute over Anambra’s historical finances into a political confrontation with implications for the 2027 presidential race.
The central issues remain whether financial obligations currently being serviced by Anambra can be directly attributed to Obi’s administration, the nature and status of the disputed ecological funds, and what financial position the former governor handed over to his successor in 2014.
The latest exchange has now put Obi’s own pledge at the centre of the controversy, with the Presidency arguing that the publication of the state government’s records places the burden on him.
