RismadarVoice Reporters
September 17, 2026
The National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, Yunusa Tanko, has released a copy of former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi’s 2014 handover document, showing that the state recorded a net financial balance of N86.67 billion at the end of Obi’s tenure.
Tanko published the document on Wednesday as the controversy over loans and other financial obligations allegedly incurred during Obi’s administration intensified between the former governor and the Anambra State Government.
The document, dated March 17, 2014, was addressed to Willie Obiano, who succeeded Obi as governor. It contained a summary of the state’s financial position as of March 14, 2014, identified as the final working day of Obi’s administration.
According to the document, local investments were valued at N27 billion, while foreign-currency investments of $156 million were put at N26.5 billion.
It also listed certified balances belonging to the state and its Ministries, Departments and Agencies at N28.17 billion, alongside a Federal Government-approved refund of N10 billion.
The total listed assets amounted to N91.67 billion. After estimated liabilities of N5 billion were deducted, the document recorded a net balance of N86,665,985,574.06.
In his statement accompanying the document, Tanko challenged former governors of Anambra State to make their respective handover reports public.
He said the publication was intended to promote accountability and allow the public to examine the financial records handed over from one administration to another.
The release comes against the backdrop of a fresh dispute over Anambra’s debt profile and the financial position inherited by successive administrations.
The Anambra State Government has maintained that loans contracted during or associated with Obi’s administration remained outstanding after he left office.
In a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Law Mefor, the government said eight external borrowing facilities had an outstanding balance of about $92.35 million as of June 30, 2026.
Using the official exchange rate, the state put the outstanding balance at approximately N127.4 billion. It said the facilities had been used for projects covering areas including healthcare, education, malaria control, erosion management, agriculture and community development.
The state government also said the present administration had continued to service the loans and had cleared about N22 billion in inherited gratuity arrears owed to retired state and local government employees and teachers.
Obi has rejected the allegation that he left Anambra with unpaid salaries, pensions, gratuities or liabilities to contractors for completed and certified projects.
The former governor said his administration cleared more than N35 billion in historical gratuity and other arrears before leaving office.
He has also challenged those alleging that he left outstanding obligations to produce evidence to substantiate the claims.
The former governor’s position contrasts with the current state government’s account of inherited liabilities, particularly the external loans that it says remained outstanding and are still being serviced.
The two sides have also disagreed over an alleged N2.1 billion ecological fund said to have been available to the incoming administration in 2014, with the state government disputing Obi’s account of the fund.
The 2014 handover report released by Tanko provides a snapshot of the financial position presented by Obi’s administration at the point of transition to Obiano.
However, the document’s reported net balance and the current debate over outstanding loans concern different aspects of the state’s finances and should not, by themselves, be treated as evidence that Anambra had no outstanding borrowing obligations.
