Former Governor of Anambra State and a 2023 presidential aspirant, Peter Obi, has reacted to the comments made by Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike over his integrity following Obi’s resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) earlier in the week.
Recall that Peter Obi had on Wednesday through a letter sent to the party secretariat posited that recent developments within the PDP made it practically impossible for him to continue participating and making constructive contributions.
Obi who later joined the Labour party has hinted that he would continue to pursue his ambition in his new party.
Wike had earlier granted an interview on Channels Television where he stated that the former Anambra State Governor lacks integrity and that he left PDP because he knew he would not win the presidential ticket.
Appearing on same platform, Channels Television on Friday evening, Obi was asked to respond to the claims put forward by Wike and the former Vice presidential candidate, said his integrity at PDP was intact.
“Wike mentioned the issue of integrity. He said that my leaving questioned my integrity. I don’t know how that one came about.
“But I think when you talk about integrity, you talk about the management of public resources. That is what we should be talking about in this country. And when such things are mentioned about me, I feel something is missing somehow.
“Go and check my record as a governor, I was impeached for three reasons: 1, my office was approved to be renovated for N298 million but I renovated everything with N43.3 million. 2. My lodge was approved to be renovated for N486m but I did everything with N81m.
“The number 3 item was that I was saving money without the authority of the House. From [my] day one[in office], we started saving money and went through the eight years that I was governor.
“Go and ask any contractor that served with me, to talk about what I’m entitled to, inflated any contract, any supplier, anybody. And when I left office, I left behind $500m at that time because it was public money. I was managing public trust.
“So for me, when you talk about integrity it questions your management of public trust and resources. Go to Anambra today, I have no land given to me by the State government.
“My managing Director of my Housing Authority, Mike Nwafor, gave me land and two houses and I told him, ‘I’m not entitled to it’. Nobody has ever seen me, in my political life, sharing money,” Obi said.