By Our Correspondent
The Anambra State Government has admitted that it did not properly verify the amount actually drawn from a $123 million loan facility associated with the administration of former Governor Peter Obi before claiming that the former governor left the state with the entire debt.
The state Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Dr Law Mefor, made the admission on Friday while appearing on the Arise TV Morning Show.
Mefor was confronted on the programme by the presenter, Rufai Oseni, who pointed out that records of the Debt Management Office (DMO) indicated that although the Obi administration signed for a $123 million World Bank loan, the actual amount drawn was about $30 million.
Responding, Mefor acknowledged that he had not properly cross-checked the figure with the relevant federal government agency before citing the $123 million figure in a recent statement.
“I did not check properly,” he said, adding that he would approach the DMO to confirm the actual amount drawn from the facility.
The commissioner explained that what he knew was that the Obi administration had signed for the loan, which was intended to fund eight critical sectors, including education and health.
He, however, acknowledged that he had not verified how much of the facility was actually drawn down by the administration before making the claim.
The admission came amid a controversy over the financial obligations allegedly inherited by successive administrations in Anambra, following renewed claims by Obi that he did not leave any debts when he handed over to his successor, Chief Willie Obiano, on March 17, 2014.
Mefor, while clarifying the government’s position, said the admission concerning the $123 million figure did not mean that the Soludo administration was withdrawing its broader claim that Obi left financial obligations behind.
“We are not saying that Obi didn’t do his best; what we are responding to is his claim that he did not leave any debts in the state,” he said.
Mefor also alleged that Obi inherited about 16 months of unpaid teachers’ salaries but, after verification of the arrears, paid five months, leaving 11 months outstanding.
He dismissed the suggestion that the Soludo administration was raising the issue primarily to undermine Obi’s presidential ambition ahead of the 2027 general election.
According to him, the government was responding because Obi had recently reiterated his claim that he left no debts when he handed over power in 2014.
The commissioner also defended the Soludo administration’s working relationship with President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying such cooperation with the federal government was not new in Anambra politics.
He noted that Obi governed Anambra under the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) while the federal government was controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) under Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan.
Mefor added that Obi’s successor, Willie Obiano, also maintained a working relationship with the APC-led federal government of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said the APGA government in Anambra had yet to roll out its presidential campaign programme.
