The Presidency has dared the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Peter Obi, to quit the 2027 race following the ongoing dispute between him and the Anambra State government over debts and financial liabilities.
The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, threw this challenge in a statement on Wednesday.
Onanuga said Obi had claimed to have left Anambra State government upon the completion of his two terms without any debt.
“Peter Obi claimed he left Anambra with a clean slate of debt and even threatened to quit the presidential race if his claims were proven otherwise,” Onanuga wrote.
According to him, the Anambra State government had responded with claims concerning liabilities allegedly left by Obi’s administration.
“Now, the Anambra government has confronted him with facts and figures showing he owed Water Corporation workers, teachers, and pension and gratuities, and had also borrowed for frivolous things.
“The ball is back in his court. Will he follow through on his threat by quitting the race?” he asked.
The Presidency’s reaction came against the backdrop of a fresh response by the Anambra State Government to Obi’s denial of claims that his administration left behind inherited debts, including a N2 billion ecological fund, contractor liabilities and unpaid salaries, gratuities and pensions.
Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Law Mefor, had in a statement on Wednesday, disputed Obi’s account.
Anambra govt releases records of alleged unpaid debts by Peter Obi during tenure as governor