By Opeyemi Adelakun
The Anambra State Government has released a 2024 out-of-court settlement document as part of its ongoing dispute with former governor Peter Obi over alleged unpaid salaries and other financial obligations from his administration.
The state government shared the document on its official X account on Wednesday, presenting it as evidence against Obi’s claim that he left office without outstanding salaries, pensions, gratuities or other liabilities.
According to the government, the document, titled “Terms of Settlement”, was signed on February 6, 2024, between the Anambra State Government and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service, Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE).
It relates to issues involving the defunct Anambra State Water Corporation and the Anambra State Environmental Protection Agency (ANSEPA).
The state government said the settlement showed that financial obligations associated with the affected agencies remained unresolved after Obi left office.
“The Water Corporation Arrears — The Evidence: Peter Obi Lied. 14 years later, Soludo entered an out-of-court settlement with the Water Corporation over salaries Obi refused to pay for 8 years. Soludo is now clearing the backlog. Obi knows; we know he lied,” the government wrote.
The latest disclosure is part of an ongoing political dispute between the state government and Obi over his record as governor of Anambra State.
The government had previously challenged Obi’s assertion that he left the state without debt or unpaid obligations.
It also referred to Obi’s reported pledge to withdraw from the presidential race if anyone could establish that he left Anambra in debt.
Obi, however, has rejected the allegations and maintained that his administration inherited substantial arrears from previous governments.
Responding to the issue, the former governor said his administration worked to settle historical financial obligations inherited from earlier administrations.
“We systematically liquidated historical gratuities and arrears dating back several years, amounting to over N35 billion,” Obi said.
The latest document released by the Anambra government has therefore become part of the competing claims by both sides over the state’s financial position during and after Obi’s tenure.
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