The 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Peter Obi, has released his handover document as part of efforts to counter recent claims by the Anambra State Government that his administration left behind loans and other financial liabilities.
The document, dated March 17, 2014, was made public on Wednesday by the Interim National Coordinator of the Obedient Movement, Dr Yunusa Tanko, amid an escalating dispute over the financial position of Anambra State when Obi handed over power.
According to reports on the document, it contains a summary of the state’s financial position at the close of business on March 14, 2014, and records a net balance of approximately ₦86.67 billion after estimated liabilities were deducted.
The disclosure came shortly after the Anambra State Government renewed its claim that successive administrations inherited financial obligations from previous governments, including loans associated with the Obi administration.
The state government has maintained that it is still servicing external loans obtained during earlier administrations. According to figures released by the state, eight external loans contracted during the period associated with Obi’s administration had an outstanding balance of $92.35 million as of June 30, 2026, which the government put at approximately ₦127.37 billion based on its stated exchange-rate calculation. (Trending News)
The loans, according to the state government, were linked to projects covering areas including malaria control, agricultural development, healthcare, education, erosion and watershed management, community development and agricultural value-chain development.
Obi’s release of the handover document is intended to provide documentary evidence of the financial position he says his administration left for his successor, Willie Obiano.
The figures contained in the document include ₦27 billion listed as local investments, about ₦26.5 billion in foreign-currency investments, ₦28.17 billion in certified state and Ministries, Departments and Agencies balances, and ₦10 billion identified as an approved Federal Government refund.
The listed assets and balances amounted to about ₦91.67 billion. The document then put estimated liabilities, including March salaries, pensions, gratuities and approved certificates for already executed projects, at ₦5 billion.
After deducting the estimated liabilities, the document recorded a net balance of ₦86.67 billion. (New Telegraph)
Tanko, while releasing the document, challenged former governors of Anambra State to make their own handover documents public.
He argued that the publication of Obi’s handover report would allow members of the public to examine the records and compare the financial position of the state at different points in its political history. (Vanguard News)
The controversy over Obi’s financial record intensified after officials of the Soludo administration said the state was still meeting obligations arising from loans contracted by previous administrations.
The state government has also disputed Obi’s previous assertions that he left Anambra without outstanding financial obligations. Its officials have referred to debt records showing external borrowing associated with projects approved during his tenure.
The government’s position is that the existence of the loans is separate from the question of whether the funds were used for legitimate development projects. It has said borrowing is not necessarily improper when funds are applied to infrastructure and other projects, but maintained that outstanding obligations remain liabilities of the state.
Obi, however, has continued to defend his record in office and has challenged critics to provide evidence of financial wrongdoing during his tenure.
In a separate statement while speaking with Nigerians in Washington, D.C., he challenged anyone to establish that one per cent of the funds handled during his eight years as governor was misappropriated.
Obi said that if such evidence could be produced, he would stop campaigning for the 2027 presidential election.
The dispute has also attracted comments from officials and political actors outside Anambra. Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has challenged Obi to honour his stated pledge to withdraw from the 2027 race if the allegations concerning outstanding liabilities from his tenure are established.
The competing positions have therefore shifted the focus of the debate towards documentary evidence, particularly the distinction between the financial position recorded at the point of handover and loans whose repayment obligations may extend over several years.
While Obi’s handover document records a positive net balance after estimated liabilities, the Anambra State Government’s more recent figures concern external loans that it says were contracted during his administration and remained outstanding as of June 30, 2026.
The two sets of figures address different points in time and different aspects of the state’s finances, making the underlying loan agreements, disbursement records, repayment schedules, audited accounts and official handover records relevant to determining how the liabilities arose and how they evolved after 2014.
For now, the dispute remains unresolved, with Obi relying on the handover document to support his account of the state’s financial position at the end of his tenure, while the Anambra State Government continues to point to outstanding external loans and other obligations it says successive administrations have had to service.
The publication of the handover document is consequently likely to intensify calls for the relevant financial records from both periods to be made available for independent scrutiny.
