Peter Obi Saved Over $150 Million for Anambra, Says Alex Otti

Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has said that Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), saved $155 million for Anambra State during his time as governor.

Mr Otti made this statement during an interview with Arise News that aired on Friday morning.

He mentioned that he was the Chief Executive of the now defunct Diamond Bank when Mr Obi saved this amount in the state’s accounts.

In 2018, Diamond Bank announced that it would merge with Access Bank, starting from mid-2019.

Mr Otti's comments come amid ongoing debates about Anambra State's finances when Mr Obi left office.

The Anambra State Government has often claimed that Mr Obi, who served from 2006 to 2014, left behind an external debt of $123.7 million from eight foreign loans he took while in office.

But Mr Obi has denied taking any loans during his tenure. He explained that the eight loans referenced by the government were actually “concessionary development-support funds secured by the federal government for states selected for it to address specific needs.”

He further argued that even if the $123.7 million debt was accurate, his savings of over $150 million and the $10 million income generated annually from that savings were enough to cover the debts.

'I Stand by My Words'

During the interview, Mr Otti recalled that he had shared details of Mr Obi’s $155 million savings in a column published in ThisDay Newspaper in 2020.

He emphasized that he stands by what he said, explaining that he wrote the article to highlight the importance of financial responsibility.

“I was using it to prove that it’s still possible for people to be prudent in government,” he said.

Mr Otti also recounted a conversation he had with Mr Obi at that time.

“He was going to leave the money in Naira. But he came to me, as the CEO of the (Diamond) bank at the time, and I told him, ‘this money you want to keep, Naira will keep losing value. You probably should convert it to dollars,’ and it was converted.

“So, it is a statement of facts. And it was something that happened several years ago. And six years after, I still stand by that,” he insisted.

What About Debts?

Mr Otti argued that even though the Anambra State Government has accused Mr Obi of leaving behind debts, this does not change the fact that the former governor left $155 million in savings.

“It doesn’t take away what I wrote (about $155 million savings),” he said when reminded of the debt claims against Mr Obi.

“What I wrote about was what he (Mr Obi) left as credit. I just gave an account of the savings,” the former bank CEO added.

The Column Otti Wrote in 2020

Titled “The Triumph of Profligacy Over Prudence,” Mr Otti’s article was published in ThisDay Newspaper on June 8, 2020.

In the article, Mr Otti stated that even though he did not belong to the same political party as Mr Obi, the former governor is “a true example of excellent leadership and accountability in today’s world where such attributes are in very short supply.”

He noted that Mr Obi managed to clear all debts and left funds for his successor before detailing the $155 million savings.

“One can attest to the fact that some $155 million was invested in the tier two capital of three Nigerian banks with maturities of about 5 years at interest rates of up to 9% per annum to the credit of the (Anambra) State,” Mr Otti wrote.

The former bank CEO explained that the Naira equivalent of the funds at the time of Mr Obi’s investment was about N25 billion.

“If those funds were rolled over at maturity in 2019, they would be worth about N62 billion today.

“If interest is assumed to remain at 9% for the past 6 years, an additional N33.5 billion would have accrued to bring the present value of the investments to over N95 billion,” he said then.

“This is one of the advantages of prudence and financial literacy.