The Anambra State Government has challenged former governor Peter Obi to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race, citing what it described as inconsistencies between his campaign pledges and allegations over debts and workers’ salary arrears left by his administration.
The state’s New Media Office raised the issue in a post on its official X account on Tuesday, asking: ‘When will Peter Obi quit presidential campaign?’
The government recalled that Obi had pledged to withdraw from the presidential contest if it was established that he left Anambra State in debt.
It also alleged that, while campaigning for governor, he promised to resign if workers were not paid their salaries as and when due.
To support its argument on salary arrears, the government published a letter dated April 25, 2006, purportedly written by Chuks Iloegbunam, who was then Obi’s Chief of Staff.
The letter, titled ‘Gubernatorial Prerogative,’ appealed to Obi to intervene in salary arrears owed to workers of the Anambra State Water Corporation.
It stated that the corporation’s monthly wage bill was about N15 million and that workers had last been paid in February.
Iloegbunam appealed to Obi to include the Water Corporation among government parastatals funded through subventions, arguing that this would prevent workers from repeatedly visiting the Governor’s Office over unpaid salaries.
The letter also referred specifically to Obi’s campaign manifesto, stating that he had pledged to resign if workers were not paid as and when due.
However, the document does not establish how long the arrears lasted, whether they were eventually cleared or whether the issue persisted until the end of Obi’s tenure.
Indeed, the letter was written only about five weeks after Obi assumed office on March 17, 2006. This raises the possibility that some or all of the salary arrears referred to in the document may have originated under the preceding administration.
The latest controversy is part of a broader dispute between Obi and the Anambra State Government over the financial position of the state when he left office in March 2014.
The state government has alleged that outstanding external loans contracted during Obi’s administration amounted to N127.4 billion as of June 30, 2026, while also alleging that salary, pension and gratuity arrears remained outstanding.
Obi has rejected the allegations, maintaining that he left office without unpaid salaries, pensions, gratuities or certified contractor obligations. He has also said his administration cleared more than N35 billion in historical gratuities and arrears.
The former governor has challenged the state government to provide evidence supporting its claims and pledged to stop campaigning for the presidency if it establishes that he left debts or unpaid obligations.