Valentine Obienyem, the media aide to the former governor of Anambra state, Peter Obi, has in this interview provided details of the funds handed over to the incumbent governor of the state, Willie Obiano. He also reveals how his boss fell apart with his successor and acclaimed godson and the reason why he left the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA).
Governor Obiano and former Governor Peter-Obi of Anambra state
Excerpts:
What exactly was the true state of account in Anambra state at the time former Governor Peter Obi left office?
When this controversy broke, I got in touch with my boss who is in Cambridge undergoing leadership training and told him what happened. And for the first time, I saw him in a very bad mood. He said they should have called him to clarify any issue they had with his handover note and he would explain.
The issue of handover note and the N75 billion is documented. When Peter Obi was handing over, he organised what was called end-of-tenure report and he invited everybody. He went to the forum with the current governor, Willie Obiano. We also had all the bank managers there. He read his account, what he was handing over to his successor and never said N75 billion cash. Peter Obi said N75 billion in cash and investments.
He clarified it on so many fora. So I am surprised that someone would say the former governor said he left N75 billion cash. As at the time he left office, he invested N26.5 billion in three banks to buy foreign denominated bonds in Access Bank, Fidelity Bank and Diamond Bank. And he said the state had about N26 billion in local currency, but let me tell you that it is even more than that. You know in accounting, you give room for certain things. The money he left is over N37 billion in liquid cash. Others are high-yielding assets. As at March 17, 2014, Anambra had N19.354 billion in Fidelity Bank. In Diamond Bank, it was N12.846 billion that Obi left.
How much was in cash left at the time Obi handed over?
He left N37 billion in local currency and N26.5 billion in foreign bond.
But they said they met N9 billion cash, N26.5 billion in bond.
That is why Obi was not happy with the situation and he feels that whoever was in charge should have called him to come and clarify issues if there was any in the note handed over. We are all humans and we know every act has its principle. They mentioned N185 billion contract and said Peter Obi paid over N73 billion and left the rest for them. Before Peter Obi became governor, previous administrations owed billions in contract. He came and paid all of them.
Anambra state owed over N35 billion in gratuity and pensions, but he liquidated the debt. Today, he awarded contracts, paid the mobilisation and the certificates generated. Before he left office, he did not owe a single contractor. What they (Obiano’s cabinet) call debt are contracts not delivered yet. He paid for certificates generated and that is the principle of contract. If you go to the Procurement Act, you will even realise that it is a crime for someone in position of authority to pay somebody in advance for work not done. Certificates are generated for jobs done. For example, if someone is awarded 100 kilometres of road, he cannot complete it in a day. So he would do it in piecemeal. And if it is 15 kilometres he completes, he would generate certificate for that 15 kilometres and be paid for it.
Were all the contracts completed?
Not all of them were completed. The figure mentioned by the incumbent governor is not right and with due respect, he is wrong in every respect.
What is the relationship between Peter Obi and Willie Obiano at the moment?
If you know Peter Obi, in anything he does, he has the interest of Nigeria and Anambra state at heart. He keeps saying he is praying for Nigeria and Anambra state and that he is praying to God for the current governor to be able to deliver the goods to the state. That defines their relationship. It is more of having the larger interest of Anambra at heart.
Is this whole thing about politics?
I won’t call it politics. It is trying to misrepresent facts out of mischief or out of improper grasp of the facts of the matter. Peter Obi does not struggle for anything. He believes that God’s time is the best. He has done his bit and wants others to succeed.
But things do not seem rosy.
There are certain things you don’t expect me to start saying here. The two of them are still alive and they would answer these themselves.
But is it not right for Obi to have called Obiano to explain the situation?
When someone goes to the rooftop to shout that you are a thief, you have a moral obligation to yourself to mount the rooftop as well and say I am not a thief. My boss is not in Nigeria and I wouldn’t know if he has called his successor. But beyond everything, we need to clarify the issues raised for the interest of Nigerians.
Going by their press conference, they said Anambra state government would lose money if it was to sell those bonds invested in today. I was afraid and I consulted a financial expert and here is his report; Anambra state invested $155 million. As at today, the value of that investment is $176 million. So Anambra has already gained over $20 million translating into over N8 billion. As at the time Obi made this investment, dollar was about N150. Now we know what it is. How can somebody come and say now that the money has lost value? I am aware that the interest yielded by the investment has been spent by the current government.
How do you think this can be resolved?
Anambra state belongs to all of us. I experience psychic encumbrance whenever Anambra state is mentioned for the wrong reason. We all want it to be resolved and I think the best way to resolve this is that when this kind of a thing comes up, let them feel free to call Peter Obi. He is accessible.
Is your boss still in any political party?
He is in the Peoples Democratic Party.
And you don’t think this is because of that?
This is another reason why Peter Obi has been vilified by some people. Let me say it now, the actual reason why Obi left APGA is that the current governor and the former chairman of APGA at a meeting with important stakeholders in Anambra state requested that he should leave APGA.
They said he was the problem with APGA and that there was no way APGA would progress if he remained there. They requested that he should leave APGA. Nobody would stay where he is not wanted. What I want to say is that if this government has anything to do for Anambra state, it should go ahead and not try to involve anybody.
I say this because this issue arose because Anambra state government plans to borrow massively from financial institutions. I understand that most of those financial institutions, based on what was handed over to him, actually felt that their funds would not be managed very well.
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