Former Anambra State Governor and 2027 presidential hopeful, Peter Obi, has put the financial records of his administration at the centre of a fresh political dispute, challenging Governor Chukwuma Soludo to name anyone he allegedly left unpaid when he handed over power.

Obi’s challenge followed claims by the Anambra Government that the state is still servicing financial obligations incurred under previous administrations, including those of Obi and his successor, Willie Obiano.

The state Commissioner for Finance, Izuchukwu Okafor, had disclosed that deductions from the state’s federal allocation were continuing as part of efforts to repay loans contracted by the earlier administrations.

But Obi, in a video response, disputed the claims and insisted that his administration did not leave behind unpaid salaries, pensions, gratuities, contractors or suppliers.

Rather than engage the broader debate over the state’s debt profile, the former governor narrowed the issue to verifiable outstanding obligations, challenging the Soludo administration to produce the name of any individual or contractor his government allegedly owed.

Obi said he was prepared to stake his 2027 presidential ambition on the claim, declaring that he would withdraw from the race if the state government could identify even one person his administration left indebted to.

The challenge has reopened scrutiny of the financial records inherited by successive governments in Anambra, with the competing claims likely to fuel further debate over which administration incurred particular obligations and how they have been serviced.

The latest exchange also adds a new dimension to the political contest ahead of the 2027 elections, as Obi’s record as Anambra governor and Soludo’s stewardship of the state become subjects of increasingly intense public comparison.