Kenneth Okonkwo, a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and former spokesman for Peter Obi during the 2023 presidential campaign, has admitted that he can no longer stand by some of his previous claims defending Obi’s financial record as former Governor of Anambra State.
In a televised interview on Sunday, Okonkwo revealed that he had been “misled” when he previously insisted that Obi left office without debts or unpaid salaries, pensions, or gratuities. “You know me, I’m a very passionate person in whatever I believe in. Let me tell you, because I was misled,” he said.
During the 2023 campaign, Okonkwo had challenged Nigerians to verify his assertion that Obi left no outstanding debts or unpaid entitlements. “There was a time I told Nigerians that Peter Obi was not owing anything, did not leave any debt, he was not owing any salary. No gratuity. No pension. And I said, go and verify,” Okonkwo recalled. “I’m not a man that stands on my own misunderstanding. When I see the facts, I agree.”
Okonkwo cited recent disclosures by the Anambra State Government, which revealed that eight loans were obtained during Obi’s tenure and that workers at the state-owned water corporation were owed salaries and arrears. “The fact is, the Anambra State Government said he borrowed eight loans. The fact is that Anambra State said that at the water corporation, he was owing workers there all the salaries, all the arrears. I cannot say the same thing that I said about Peter Obi in 2023,” he admitted.
These remarks come amid ongoing debate over Anambra’s debt profile and the financial obligations tied to projects executed during Obi’s administration. According to the state government, the contracted value of eight external financing facilities linked to projects under Obi amounted to $123.77 million, with $92.35 million reportedly outstanding as of June 30, 2026.
Obi, however, has rejected the claim that the $123.77 million represents debt left behind by his administration. He contends that the figure includes various categories of multilateral development financing and maintains—citing Debt Management Office figures—that Anambra’s external debt stood at about $30 million when he left office in March 2014.
Okonkwo also reflected on his previous defense of Obi’s family, recalling how he had rebutted allegations concerning an expensive wristwatch allegedly worn by one of President Bola Tinubu’s sons. He questioned whether he could still make such a defense today.
Looking ahead to the 2027 presidential election, Okonkwo said his approach to Obi would be different. “That’s why I said in 2023, I campaigned for them as the examination in chief. In 2027, it’s going to be a cross-examination,” he remarked.
Okonkwo now serves as a key figure in the ADC-led political coalition and is the spokesman for the presidential campaign of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who is seeking the ADC’s presidential ticket for 2027.
Peter Obi governed Anambra State from March 2006 to March 2014, with his first tenure interrupted by impeachment in November 2006. He later returned to office after the impeachment was overturned and handed over to Willie Obiano in March 2014.
