Former Secretary to the Anambra State Government, Chief Oseloka Henry Obaze, has clarified the political and administrative relationship between Governor Chukwuma Soludo and Mr Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), insisting that Obi has not held public office since 2014 and did not hand over power directly to Soludo.
Obaze, a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Presidential Advisory Council, said he was familiar with the financial resources Obi left behind in Anambra State, having served as Secretary to the State Government (SSG) under his successor, Chief Willie Obiano.
Speaking on Arise Television, Obaze disclosed that he personally prepared Obi’s handover notes and that a formal handover ceremony, which was televised, took place at the end of his administration.
He argued that if Governor Soludo had questions about the state’s finances and the funds inherited by his administration, he should direct them to Obiano, who handed over power to him, rather than Obi, who left office in 2014.
To support his position, Obaze referred to an open letter by the current Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, who was the managing director of the bank where the funds were reportedly domiciled at the time. According to Obaze, Otti had confirmed that the money Obi spoke about was in the account and had been properly invested for the benefit of subsequent administrations.
“Governor Alex Otti, who was then an MD of the bank, did write an open letter saying that, as far as he knows, the money mentioned by Peter Obi was domiciled in the account and it was invested properly for those who came after,” Obaze said.
He further maintained that he knew how the funds were utilised during Obiano’s administration, particularly in its early days.
“How they managed the money, I can tell you. I was Secretary to Obiano’s government. I know how much was spent in the first 100 days of his administration, and he hadn’t even earned a hundred million,” he said.
Obaze also recalled an encounter involving Obiano and the then Governor of Taraba State, during which the latter reportedly asked how Anambra had been able to finance the construction of an airport. According to Obaze, Obiano attributed the funding to resources inherited from his predecessor.
On the controversy surrounding the debts allegedly incurred by Obi’s administration, Obaze urged the Soludo-led government to distinguish between loans contracted directly by the Anambra State Government and those obtained by the Federal Government on behalf of state governments.
He argued that the debt being attributed to Obi’s administration was part of a borrowing arrangement undertaken by the Federal Government for the benefit of state governments across the country, and should therefore not be presented as a loan independently contracted by the former governor.
Obaze’s comments come amid renewed political exchanges over the financial legacy of successive administrations in Anambra State and the extent to which the state’s present economic position can be attributed to decisions taken by previous governments.