Election seasons are often marked by politicians feeding the public with lies to discredit opponents. This undermines our hard-earned democracy as voters are unable to make informed decisions.

In this regard, the sustained attacks by Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, on his predecessor and the presi­dential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Peter Obi have raised serious concerns about his motive.

Barrister Olalekan Festus Ojo, a La­gos-based human rights lawyer, said that the ongoing altercations between Soludo and Obi are political calculation, rather than genuine governance accountability.

Ojo, an advocate of social justice, declared that what is going on between the two must be assessed not merely as a historical gover­nance dispute, but as a calculated political intervention that deserves the most honest public scrutiny.

Ojo, asserted that the facts, as attested by witnesses of unimpeachable credibility, are difficult to dismiss.

According to him, “Governor Alex Otti, then Chief Executive Officer of a major Ni­gerian bank with direct institutional knowl­edge of Anambra State’s financial position, has publicly affirmed Peter Obi’s positive financial legacy.

“Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, then Nigeria’s Finance Minister and Coordinating Minis­ter of the Economy, arguably the most cred­ible economic witness available in Nigeria, has similarly attested to Obi’s responsible stewardship of Anambra State’s finances.

“When two witnesses of this calibre inde­pendently corroborate a former governor’s financial legacy, their testimony carries an evidentiary weight that political allegations from a sitting governor with demonstrable partisan motivations simply cannot over­come.”

He maintained that Governor Soludo’s well-publicised support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election creates an irresistible inference that his persistent campaign against Obi’s legacy is motivated by political calculation, rather than genuine governance accountability.

Ojo stressed that a governor genuinely concerned about inherited debts had 11 years and multiple platforms to raise these concerns before Peter Obi became a presi­dential candidate of national significance.

“The timing of these allegations, inten­sifying precisely as Obi’s 2027 candidacy gains momentum, speaks louder than their content.

“My advice to Governor Soludo is direct and fraternal: the most powerful legacy any governor can build is one that speaks for itself through measurable development out­comes in Anambra State.

“Deploy that energy toward Anambra’s present challenges, rather than relitigating a predecessor’s record that eminent Nigerians have already credibly validated. History will judge the motives behind these allegations as clearly as it will judge Peter Obi’s actual gubernatorial record.

Recall that among the many accusations levelled against the former Anambra State governor by Soludo was contained in the lengthen statement signed by his Commis­sioner for Information Law Mefor, which he titled “Peter Obi’s Debts And Lies: More Questions Than Answers” where he alleged that Obi took loans and owe salaries/pen­sion arrears to workers and conceal same from his handover notes and lied about them for 13 years.

He also claimed that Obi’s unique arith­metic of development where the purpose of development is to save money and earn interest in banks rather than the safety and welfare of citizens;

According to Soludo, Obi ‘s unique han­dover notes with some phoney assets con­cealed humongous liabilities.

He also accused the NDC presidential can­didate of deliberate evasion of the question of where he kept the N2.13 billion Ecological Fund which couldn’t be found in the account and bank he claimed to have left it.

On his part, Peter Obi responded to Solu­do, insisting that he left Anambra financial­ly strong, without $123m debt, and with over $150m in funds.

Obi dismissed claims that he left Anam­bra State with $123 million in debt, insisting that he handed over the state in a strong fi­nancial position with more than $150 million in funds.

Speaking in an exclusive interview on Arise News on Thursday, the former Anam­bra State governor, reacting to claims by the current governor, Chukwuma Soludo, said the allegation that he left behind $123 million in debt was “very wrong public ac­counting.”

“Assuming—let me even assume that Anambra State was right, even though it’s false, I didn’t leave $123 million—let me as­sume the worst-case scenario: that there was $123.7 million owed as of the time I left. I left over $150 million that was earning about $10 million annually. If they had just kept that money I left and used the income to pay the loan, they would have finished paying it now, with the $150 million capital still remaining and still giving Anambra State $10 million annually.

“How it is now bundled that as of the time I left office, I left $123-something million is very wrong public accounting,” he said.

He further stated that during his time as governor, he didn’t approach any finan­cial institution to borrow money or issue bonds on behalf of Anambra State, adding that his administration didn’t owe salaries, gratuities, pensions or verified and certified contractors.

“Let me categorically state again: I, Mr. Peter Obi, didn’t approach any financial in­stitution to borrow money or issue bonds on behalf of Anambra State in the eight years that I was in government.

“On the day I left office, the government of Anambra State, which I served, was not owing any salary, gratuity, or pension to those scheduled to be paid by the state gov­ernment. We were not owing any contrac­tor or supplier who had executed their job, certified, and verified—not one. That is the way it is the day I left the office.”

On the World Bank and IFAD loans, Obi said the figures had been wrongly presented, explaining that the concessionary facilities were obtained by the Federal Government and on-lent to states for specific develop­ment projects. He said Anambra’s foreign debt rose from about $18 million when he assumed office to $30 million when he left in March 2014.

“On these issues where World Bank and IFAD loans were listed in documents, the way it is presented is wrong public ac­counting. First, those were concessionary development support obtained by the Fed­eral Government of Nigeria and on-lent to state governments that qualified or that they wanted to support with certain projects. These are concessionary facilities payable over a period of 25 to 35 years.

Speaking on the implication of attacks on Peter coming from his kinsmen of Igbo extraction, former APC state chairman of the party in Abia State, Kingsley Ononogbu, said that Ndigbo must first put their house in order if they really want a slot at the pres­idency

He said that among the frontline presi­dential candidates, it’s only Peter Obi who has been consistently attacked by his own people, saying that the implication is that Ndigbo are not yet ready for presidency.

He said, “Selfishness is our Igbo lan­guage. So how come other people manage their differences better? Igbo people should come together and strategically put heads together on how to go and how to have a long handshake with the other tribes and the other places. If they’re waiting for it to be your turn, I don’t know when it’s going to be our turn. It has to be a product of un­derstanding.”

Also reacting to the tendency of Ndigbo to undermine their own, Uchenna Sunday Igwesi, coordinator of Renewed Hope Am­bassadors and a chieftain of the APC in Enu­gu State, explains why the presidential bid of an Igbo person may be a herculean task.

He said, “Even if Peter Obi wins South East, let’s assume, that’s the worst scenario, they’ll not give him the presidency. Some of us who were in the National Assembly, noticed the hatred the people have against the Igbos. We need time to negotiate.

“If an Igbo man must be president, he must carry everybody along. Igbos are the problems themselves. We need reorientation before we move out. Your house must be in order before you move out. The first thing that must be done is reorientation. Redis­covering ourselves. Peter Obi is contesting as president, most of the attacks on him are coming from Igbo people. We need to find why those things are happening.”

On his part, John Uchechukwu, a busi­nessman, told our reporter that Soludo’s action is based on political vendetta. Ac­cording to him, the Anambra State governor is eyeing the presidency in future and he feels that if Peter gets it now he’ll lose the opportunity.

He said, “I don’t understand why this lev­el of bitterness against Peter Obi, if not for the fact that Soludo wants to be president. He has praised Peter Obi during his gover­norship debate and he’s turning around to bring all kinds of unverified claims that Obi didn’t deliver as a governor and that he left Anambra State in debt. Everybody knows that Peter Obi is one of the best governors Anambra State has had. It’s very unfortu­nate that this is happening among Ndigbo. Have you seen any person from the north attacking Atiku Abubakar the way Soludo is doing? Even any other presidential can­didate. I didn’t expect this from Soludo but the fortunate thing is that none of these things will diminish the love that Ndigbo or even Nigerians have for Obi. The man is an institution.”