Obi's N2.13bn Ecological Fund Assertion Challenged by Anambra State

The Anambra State Government has outrightly refuted former Governor Peter Obi's assertion that he bequeathed over ₦2.13 billion in an ecological fund account prior to his departure from office in 2014. The state maintains that the specific First Bank account cited by Obi was not designated for ecological funds and, furthermore, never held the substantial amount he claimed.

Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Law Mefor, conveyed this position in a statement distributed on Wednesday via the Anambra New Media X platform. The statement, titled “Gov Peter Obi and Record of Public Debt in Anambra: Facts Beyond Propaganda and Lies,” served as the government's official response. Mefor disclosed that the government had secured a certified printout for First Bank account number 2018779464, which Obi had identified as the repository for the ecological funds.

According to Mefor, the official records reveal a different story. He stated, “We have obtained a certified printout of the account from inception to date. The account is an Internally Generated Revenue Consolidated Revenue Account, not an ecological fund account.” He further emphasized, “From 2011 when the account was opened until date, there has never been any such amount—whether as inflow or balance—in the account.” The commissioner subsequently called upon Obi to clarify the precise location of the ₦2.13 billion he purportedly left for his successor.

This latest development follows Obi's Tuesday declaration, where he dismissed claims by the Anambra Government regarding inherited debts, including a ₦2 billion ecological loan, outstanding contractor payments, and unpaid salaries, gratuities, and pensions. Obi had previously asserted that his administration diligently cleared historical gratuities and arrears stretching back several years, totaling more than ₦35 billion. He famously stated, “At the point of handover, the state owed nothing in salaries, gratuities, or pensions, nor did we owe anything to any contractor for projects duly executed and certified.”

Regarding the contentious ecological fund, Obi had explained that the money was released merely three months before the conclusion of his tenure to address the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis. He maintained that despite considerable pressure to disburse the funds, he resisted, insisting that the money be preserved for his successor, citing the principle of “government is a continuum” and the fact that the funds were earmarked for a specific project. Obi further claimed the money was left “100 per cent intact” in First Bank, with the account balance exceeding ₦2.13 billion.

However, Mefor reiterated that the government's certified bank statement, covering the account's entire operational period, does not corroborate Obi's characterization of the account nor the financial sum he presented. The commissioner also addressed broader allegations of debts inherited by the incumbent administration, indicating that eight external borrowings remained outstanding when Obi exited office on March 17, 2014. Mefor stated that “as of June 30, 2026, the total balance of these loans stood at ₦127.4 billion at the official exchange rate.” The government listed these loans as the Malaria Control Booster Project, Third National Fadama Development Project, Health System Development Project II, State Education Programme Investment Project, Community and Social Development Project, Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project, and Value Chain Development Project.

Mefor equally challenged Obi's assertion that his government left no outstanding salaries, gratuities, or pensions. He noted that the Soludo administration has settled approximately ₦22 billion in inherited gratuity arrears, but clarified that “legacy arrears remain from Obi and earlier administrations.” These outstanding liabilities, he detailed, include arrears owed to retired teachers and employees of the Water Corporation. Regarding the Water Corporation workers, Mefor explained, “salary arrears lingered through the Obi administration and were eventually settled under the Soludo administration, with the first two of three instalments already paid.” He also pointed out that while Obi’s administration verified and certified 16 months of salary arrears for primary school teachers, it only disbursed payments for five months. Mefor quoted, “The Obi administration verified/certified 16 months of salary arrears for primary school teachers but paid only five months.”

Furthermore, the commissioner dismissed Obi's claim of leaving more than ₦75 billion in state savings. Mefor firmly stated, “We will not engage in nebulous creative accounting. If there were ₦75 billion in savings, as claimed, where are the records?” The government's comprehensive response follows Obi's earlier rejection of the debt claims and his public challenge to anyone who could disprove his account of the ecological fund, vowing, “If anybody can establish anything to the contrary, I will stop campaigning.”