The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, has again denied claims that he took out loans or issued bonds on behalf of Anambra State during his time as governor.

Obi made the clarification while featuring on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Thursday, responding to accusations from the Anambra State Government that his eight-year administration left behind debts and financial obligations that subsequent governments have had to shoulder.

According to the former governor, when he handed over power in March 2014, his government had no outstanding salaries, pensions, or gratuities, and owed no money to contractors whose completed projects had been duly certified and verified.

“Let me categorically state again: I, Mr Peter Obi, did not approach any financial institution to borrow money or issue bonds on behalf of Anambra State in the eight years I was in government,” he said.

“On the day I left office, the government of Anambra State, which I headed, was not owing any salary, gratuity, or pension to those scheduled to be paid by the state government. We were not owing any contractor or supplier who executed his job, certified and verified — not one.”

Obi explained that some of the funds now being linked to his tenure were actually concessionary facilities arranged by the Federal Government and channelled to states for targeted development schemes.

He referenced the State Education Programme Investment Project (SEPIP), noting that Anambra, alongside Ekiti and Bauchi, was chosen for concessionary multilateral funding due to strong performance in the education sector.

“Yes, and the World Bank,” Obi said when asked whether the funding came through a Federal Government arrangement.

“To support us. Not that we go to the World Bank and say give me this, not that we go to any commercial bank. And to even make it more… when it came, if you look at SEPIP, you will see that the drawdown was well after I left office.”

For its part, the Anambra State Government has insisted that loans taken during Obi’s administration remain the state’s responsibility, adding that it is still servicing them.

Obi, however, pushed back on that position, arguing that funds not drawn down from a loan facility cannot be classified as debt incurred under his watch.

“Even if I had gone to a bank and borrowed money — even if I had gone to a bank and borrowed money, but I did not spend the money, you cannot call it debt I left,” he said.

He further pointed to a statement credited to a former Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Abraham Nwankwo, who Obi said had publicly noted at his own send-off ceremony that Obi was the only governor who never came to his office seeking approval to borrow.

Obi maintained that his administration’s financial dealings were transparent and could be confirmed through official records, including the handover report he submitted at the end of his tenure.