FG’s N25bn Bond: The tango between Gov Obiano and Sen Uba

By Edward T. Dibiana

It appears there in no end in sight to the lingering feud between the Governor of Anambra state, Willie Obiano and the Senator representing Anambra South Senatorial District, Ifeanyi Ubah, going by the simmering controversy over the N25 billion federal government bond, said to have been drawn down by the state government, before maturity.

Senator Ubah, indeed, added more fuel to the fire of the controversy when he alleged on Friday, November 21, that Governor Obiano made the state lose N8 billion out of the deal because of his desperation to draw the funds earlier than their maturity dates of December 2020 and April 2022, respectively, wondering why the governor would do so, especially as his tenure in office is due to elapse in about 15 months time.

Ubah had mentioned the Debt Management Office/Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, as sources of the bond, which he said was refund for federal roads rehabilitated or reconstructed, during the administrations of two former governors of the state, Peter Obi and Chris Ngige.

As earlier reported by 365Daily, Senator Ubah had alleged that the N25Bn bond, which he said was approved by the federal government without passing through the National Assembly, was subsequently received by the Anambra state government. He had gone further to ask Anambra people to demand that the state governor, Willie Obiana, accounts for the money.

Anambra State Did Not Receive N25Bn Bond – Commissioner

But in a statement last Thursday, the Anambra state Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, C. Don Adinuba, insisted that the Anambra State Government has not raised any money from the Debt Management Office or the Federal Ministry of Finance, under a bond or any financial instrument from any institution or organization, describing the allegations as untrue and “bizarre”.

Adinuba: “Our record of prudent financial management and integrity is well acknowledged far and near. Last August 31, for instance, Budgit, a highly regarded independent civic organization which uses technology to intersect citizen engagement with institutional improvement to facilitate societal change, declared Anambra State and the petroleum-rich Rivers State, the two states with the best fiscal responsibility index in Nigeria.”

According to the Commissioner, “We are not aware of anywhere in the world where a bond can be issued secretly. Before a bond can be issued for a state government in Nigeria, the State House of Assembly, the Debt Management Office, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Securities and Exchange Commission must be involved. Every bit of the transaction must not only be transparent but also be public knowledge.

“It is tough to speculate how Ubah came about the phantom N25bn bond which Anambra State purportedly raised surreptitiously from the DMO/Federal Ministry of Finance.”

We Only Got Promissory Notes

Adinuba stated that the “only thing that any individual can possibly think about is the promissory notes which the state government received in two tranches from the Debt Management Office/Federal Ministry of Finance for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of failed federal roads in the state.”

In a telephone chat with 365Daily, on Saturday, November 21, the Commissioner wondered why people even take Ubah seriously. ” This is somebody that doesn’t even know the difference between a bond and promissory note. First, he said government took a loan and people should ask what the loan was used for.

How can we be talking about loan when Anambra state was the one being owed money by the federal government. Later he started talking about a bond, now that we have explained these things he is making more wild allegations. Knowledgeable people would see through these wild allegations for what they are,” Adinuba said.

The promissory notes, he said, were never secret, as he argued that “the reimbursement was recommended by the Senate after a public hearing on the debts owed the state for the roads rehabilitation and reconstruction.

“Given the fact that the Federal Ministry of Finance did not have the cash to settle the debts, it opted for promissory notes.”

That’s Not Correct – Ubah

Senator Ubah, however, insists that the Anambra state government is being economical with the truth, as he claims that Adinuba’s statement, which he said was untrue, vindicates his position of official malfeasance against Governor Obiano’s government.

Ubah, who spoke to 365Daily through his media aide, Kamen Chuks, said that facts in the public domain “shows that the Commissioner, Adinuba is not a witness of truth, going by his statement as reported in the media, to the effect that Gov. Obiano did not have any dealing with the Debt Management Office (DMO).

“In fact, Gov. Obiano inexplicably gave away over N8 billion to banks as bank charges and penalty in order to cash out the promissory notes before their maturity dates, thereby ensuring that Anambra lost over N8 billion out of the N25 billion from the transaction.”

Ubah , referencing some relevant documents he had made public a few days ago, disclosed that the N25 Billion was billed to be paid in two installments. The first Instalment was for N10 Billion, which was billed to mature on December 28, 2020 ( only about four weeks away), while the second instalment for N15 Billion is billed to mature on April 1, 2022 – after the expiration of Obiano’s tenure as governor of Anambra state.

Ubah maintained that in order for Gov. Obiano “to cash out on the N25 Billion that hasn’t matured yet, he had to terminate the deal by giving up 15% of the total sum per annum, ie Obiano paid about N3 Billion in bank charges for the N10b on the first promissory note which has a tenure of two years, and paid another N4.5 Billion on the N15 Billion on the second promissory note, which has a tenure of three years.”

This, according to the senator, bothers on “criminality and intentional plot to jeopardise the wellbeing of Anambra State by withdrawing from the future. And I invite Anambra people to join me in seeking answers to the following questions:

Why didn’t Obiano capture this transaction in the budget he presented for the Year?;

Why did Obiano withdraw future State funds which he didn’t work for?

What exactly did Obiano do with the monies? Why is Obiano, through Adinuba, lying about this shameful activity?

What was so important that Obiano had to give up a whooping N8 Billion of Anambra money under such terrible economy?

Why would Obiano, a banker, throw away 8 Billion Naira and where is the balance now deployed to?

Adinuba to Ubah: We’ve Done Nothing Wrong

Responding to the slew of allegations of wrongdoing against Anambra state government, Adinuba stated that the state followed due process in the transactions.

“The amounts and proceeds of the promissory notes are captured clearly in the Report of the Accountant General with Financial Statements for the year ended 31st December, 2019. Even the purposes to which the funds are deployed are stated clearly in the Annual Report. The transactions could not have been more honourable and transparent.

“Anambra State is today regarded as a model in governance. Despite limited resources, it is ahead of every other state in Nigeria in a lot of areas, including the employment rate which many economists in the world regard as the most important indicator of economic performance.

On August 19, 2020, for example, the National Bureau of Statistics published the latest survey of unemployment rates in Nigeria which saw Anambra, with a13.1% unemployment rate in a working population of 2.25 million, as the state with the lowest unemployment rate in the country, whereas the average national unemployment rate is 27.1%. It is not for nothing that Anambra has now become the most competitive state in Nigeria,” the Commissioner said.

A Festering Feud

Although Ubah’s camp claim that they are no political undertones in the unfolding controversy, followers of Anambra state politics attest to the fact that there has been no love lost between the supporters of Governor Obiano and Senator Ubah since the last senatorial election in the state in 2019.

The two camps have been in a seeming war of attrition – which has been at play in the social media – where both camps strive to outdo each other in sensational propaganda, often laced with unprintable expressions that swirl around defamation.

Before the last governorship election in Anambra state, which Obiano contested and won a second term in office as governor, both politicians appeared to have closed ranks, as Ubah openly supported the governor. The gist then in political circles was that there existed an understanding between Obiano and Ubah, to the effect that Ubah would support the former’s second term aspiration, and in turn, Gov. Obiano would assist him secure a senatorial ticket under the platform of Obiano’s All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

But that was not the case as it turned out that Ubah was surprisingly disqualified from standing for the election, in a controversial manner on the eve of the senatorial election primary, leading to a friction in the relationship between both politicians.

The senator in a recent media interview collaborated that account thus: “That same year, 2017, I was lured into APGA with firm promises that I would be given a ticket to vie for the Anambra South(senatorial seat). But two days to the primary election, I was totally disqualified from vying for the Senate position in APGA. So, I went in to create my own platform, YPP to prove my point and the fact of the love people have for me.”

Just recently, there were animated altercations in the state, between the two camps, over some palliative repair works in some federal roads in Anambra South senatorial district, facilitated by the senator. 365Daily gathered that the Federal Ministry of Works & Housing had on the strength of a petition by the Anambra state government, issued a stop-work order on the construction firm that was handling the road works.

The state government’s grouse on the issue allegedly centred on the claim that it wasn’t notified by the senator before embarking on the palliative works.

But Ubah at the time maintained that he got due approval from federal authorities, pointing out that since the roads in question were federal roads, Anambra state government had little or no role to play in the execution of the projects. That disagreement was to elicit a heated debate that centred around whether the legislator was playing to the gallery, or if the state government was right to have stopped the palliative work, that would potentially benefit the people of the state. The matter was however, resolved when the Federal Ministry of Works, officially issued authorization letter for the works to continue.

Whether the current controversy centres around pay back for a political deal gone awry, as suggested by many, or simply revolves the genuine concern of a citizen demanding democratic accountability from government, for the good of the people and society, Anambra people are watching.