Kenneth Okonkwo, a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), says he was misled on the disputed debt records of Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), during his tenure as governor of Anambra.
Okonkwo spoke on ‘Sunday Politics’, a programme on
Television Continental (TVC).
He pointed to recent statements from the Anambra state
government, adding that the disclosures have left him reconsidering some of his
stance on Obi before the 2023 general election.
Okonkwo currently serves as spokesman for the presidential
campaign council of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, the ADC presidential
candidate for 2027.
He played the same role for Obi during the last general
poll, often defending the former governor’s records with characteristic
fervour, while challenging Nigerians to fact-check his claims.
On Sunday, however, Okonkwo said he could no longer stand by
some of the claims he tendered on Obi in the face of new information concerning
the latter’s stint in Anambra.
“You know me, I’m a very passionate person in whatever I
believe in. Let me tell you because I was misled,” he said.
“There was a time I told Nigerians that Peter Obi was not
owing anything, did not leave any debt, he was not owing any salary. No
gratuity. No pension. And I said, go and verify.
“I’m not a man that stands on my own misunderstanding. When
I see the facts, I agree.
“The fact is Anambra state government said he borrowed eight
loans. The fact is that Anambra state said that at the water corporation, he
was owing workers there, all the salaries, all the arrears. I cannot say the
same thing that I said about Peter Obi in 2023.”
Okonkwo also recalled how he previously defended Obi’s
family over claims about the cost of a wristwatch allegedly worn by President
Bola Tinubu’s son.
“There was a time they figured out that Tinubu’s son was
wearing a watch worth up to N135 million,” he said.
“I ran out on television and I said nobody from Peter Obi’s
family can ever wear such a thing when people are dying in poverty. I stuck my
reputation on it. Can I still say that today?”
He added that his position on Obi’s records has now changed.
“That’s why I said in 2023, I campaigned for them as the
examination in chief. In 2027, it’s going to be a cross-examination,” Okonkwo
added.
BACK STORY
Okonkwo’s remarks come amid lingering dispute between the
Anambra state government and Obi over the debt allegedly left behind by the
former governor.
The controversy began in mid-September when Izuchukwu
Okafor, the commissioner for finance in Anambra, said the government is still
repaying loans taken by previous administrations, including those of former
governors Obi and Willie Obiano.
Obi would later counter the commissioner, saying he had no
outstanding debts in the south-east state when he left office.
He said his administration never owed any salaries,
pensions, or contractor payments during his tenure, adding that he left N2.1
billion ecological fund for the state.
But the Anambra government pushed back days later, saying
Obi left $123.77 million in debt as of the time he concluded his tenure, and
that there was no evidence of the ecological funds he claimed to have
bequeathed.
The government later released official documents relating to
N363.38 million in salary arrears inherited from the Obi administration.
Obi served as governor of Anambra from March 2006 to March
2014, but his first term was interrupted by impeachment in November 2006.
He returned to office after the court overturned the
impeachment and served until March 17, 2014, when he handed the reins to
Obiano.
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