As the campaign for the November 18 governorship election in Anambra state gathers momentum, war of words has heightened between Governor Willie Obiano and his predecessor, Peter Obi, over the state of the finances of the state.
Obiano and Obi were friends before they joined politics having served together on the board of a Nigerian bank. As Mr. Obi rounded off his second term, he brought Mr. Obiano back to the country and campaigned for him to succeed him as the governor of the state under the platform of the All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA.
But they later fell apart after the elections, culminating in Mr. Obi defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Obi has thrown his weight behind his former Secretary to the State Government, Oseloka Obaze of the PDP to unseat Obiano as governor.
While Obi has accused his successor of non-performance and frittering of billions of naira he met in the state’s coffers, Obiano said the former governor was working against him because he refused to give him N7 billion he allegedly claimed to had spent on Obiano’s election.
Obi, at an interaction with PDP officers in Nnewi North local government area, said Obiano had nothing to show for the mandate he was given by the people of the state and therefore does not deserve re-election.
According to him, most of the projects he started and could not complete had remained the way he left them, but Obiano in a statement yesterday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Strategic Communication, Oliver Okpala, said the former governor, by making the statement, “has again exposed himself to public ridicule, odium and contempt.
“It is shameful for Obi to be lying so openly and playing on the intelligence of the people of Anambra state. Obiano has not only exceedingly surpassed what he met on the ground by completing most of the existing projects, he has gone ahead to embark on very strategic projects”, he said.
Okpala further queried: “Why did Obi not work for the governorship candidate of the PDP Obaze Oseloka when he was handing over despite the fact that Oseloka was his SSG? What has changed between then and now?”
The governor’s aide said the real crux of the matter was not bad governance but the proceeds of godfatherism, which Obiano has reportedly refused to pay to Obi?
“This is the reason for Obi’s sudden negative turn against Obiano. The governor’s refusal to pay the N7 billion he claimed to had spent on his election is the bone of contention. This is the financial disagreement which is fuelling this sudden bad blood.
“Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah confirmed this during a recent interview and challenged Obi to a public debate. Obiano has said he would not pay and that there is no room for godfatherism in Anambra.”
