The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, has rejected claims by the Anambra State Government that his administration left behind inherited debts, including a N2bn ecological fund loan, contractor liabilities and unpaid salaries, gratuities and pensions.

Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, described the claims as false, saying his administration had systematically cleared more than N35bn in historical gratuities and arrears before handing over power.

He said the state had no outstanding obligations in salaries, pensions or gratuities at the time he left office, adding that no contractor was owed for projects that had been duly executed and certified.

The former governor was responding to comments by the Anambra Commissioner for Finance, Izuchukwu Okafor, who said the administration of Governor Chukwuma Soludo was still servicing loans inherited from previous administrations.

Okafor said the state government had not obtained any commercial bank loan since Soludo assumed office but continued to make deductions from its Federation Account allocations to repay existing obligations.

He also said the state had reduced its debt burden by more than 83 per cent.

Obi specifically disputed the claim concerning the N2bn ecological fund, explaining that the money was released shortly before the end of his tenure to address the Oko/Umuchiana erosion crisis.

He said he refused to spend the funds because they were tied to a specific project and should be available to his successor, in keeping with the principle of continuity in government.

According to Obi, the money remained untouched in a First Bank account, which he said had a balance of more than N2.13bn at the time.

He stressed that the funds were separate from the more than N75bn in savings he said his administration left for the state.

Obi challenged the Anambra Government or anyone else to provide evidence contradicting his claims, saying he would discontinue his 2027 presidential campaign if his account could be proven wrong.