Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo has said his relationship with his predecessor, Peter Obi, remains friendly even though the two men disagree on political and economic matters. Soludo made the remark in an interview with BBC News Igbo on Monday, according to Punch Newspapers. He said the two families are close and that their political differences have not damaged that bond.
The governor's comments were reported as fresh friction has emerged between the two men over Obi's time in office and the state's finances when he left in 2014.
Why it matters
The relationship between Soludo and Obi draws attention because both are prominent figures from Anambra and the South-East, and their disagreements have played out publicly in the run-up to the 2027 presidential election. Obi was the Labour Party's candidate in 2023 and remains a significant force in Nigerian politics. Any signal from Soludo about where he stands is read closely in the state and beyond.
Soludo's remarks also touch on a dispute that has run for months: how close the two families really are, and what Soludo meant when he wrote in 2022 that Obi could not win the presidency.
Family ties, political distance
Soludo described the personal side of the relationship in warm terms, saying the two households are on good terms. He said Obi's wife stood as godmother at a baptism for one of his children, and that his own wife served as godmother at a confirmation for one of Obi's children.
"When it comes to politics, give me mine, give him his," Soludo said, according to Punch Newspapers, framing the disagreements as ordinary political competition rather than a personal quarrel.
He acknowledged that the two men backed different candidates in the Anambra governorship election, saying Obi supported the person he believed should lead the state while Soludo credited his own victory to God.
The godparent question has itself been contested. In September, Obi said he and his wife were godparents to Soludo's children. Daniel Ezeigwe, a media aide to the Anambra First Lady, disputed that account, saying Nonye Soludo was confirmation godmother to Obi's daughter while Obi's wife, Margaret, was baptismal godmother to one of Soludo's daughters. Soludo's latest comments broadly match that version.
Soludo revisits his 2022 article
The governor was also asked about a 2022 article, titled "History Beckons and I Will Not Be Silent," in which he questioned Obi's presidential ambition. Soludo said he never predicted that Obi would lose.
His argument at the time, he said, was that Obi's run as a third-force candidate would pull votes from the Peoples Democratic Party and make it easier for the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Tinubu, to win. Soludo said he made that point to Obi directly in a letter.
He also said he personally invited Obi to join the All Progressives Grand Alliance in March 2022, at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, so that Obi could contest the presidency. Those early talks, according to Soludo, centred on mobilising the Igbo people rather than simply capturing power.
Before seeking office, he said, there should first be deliberation about alliances. He added that a united opposition would still not guarantee victory over an incumbent administration, though he described such unity as a starting point.
Asked whether his view had changed ahead of 2027, Soludo did not offer a fresh prediction, according to the interview account.
A record under dispute
The renewed disagreement between the two men concerns Obi's stewardship of Anambra and the state's financial position when he handed over in 2014. Punch Newspapers reported that the two sides have clashed over those claims.
Soludo's interview appears aimed at separating the personal from the political. He presented the friction as debate between friends with different ideas, not a rupture.
The wider political context is not quiet. Other Nigerian outlets have weighed in on the relationship, with The Sun Nigeria publishing a piece critical of Soludo and Daily Post Nigeria quoting Senator Victor Umeh saying Obi will remain more popular than the governor. Independent Newspaper Nigeria has examined whether Soludo can prevent a repeat of Obi's strong showing in Anambra in 2023. Those are the outlets' own framings, not statements by either man.
What to watch: whether Obi responds to Soludo's account, and whether the two men keep their disagreements confined to policy as the 2027 election cycle gathers pace.
