Former Anambra State Governor and NDC presidential candidate, Peter Obi has denied claims by the state government that his administration left behind inherited debts, including a ₦2 billion ecological loan, contractor liabilities and unpaid salaries, gratuities and pensions.
Obi says his administration cleared historical gratuity and salary arrears dating back several years, amounting to more than ₦35 billion.
He insists that at the point of handover, the state owed nothing in salaries, gratuities or pensions, and had no outstanding payments to contractors for duly executed and certified projects.
On the ₦2 billion ecological fund, Obi says the money was released about three months before the end of his tenure to address the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis.
He says, “I refused to spend the money, insisting that it should be left for my successor because government is a continuum and the funds were tied to a specific project.”
According to Obi, the money remained intact in a First Bank account, with a balance of more than ₦2.13 billion at the time.
He adds that funds earmarked for specific projects were excluded from the more than ₦75 billion in savings he says his administration left behind.
Obi challenged anyone who can prove otherwise to come forward, saying, “If anybody can establish anything to the contrary, I will stop campaigning.”
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