Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), says Peter Obi, former governor of Anambra and 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, never conducted LG elections during his tenure as governor.
Wike spoke in Abuja on Sunday at St. James Anglican Church in Asokoro during a thanksgiving service held for the “successful completion of inaugurated projects” in the FCT.
The minister appeared to be taking a jab at opposition figures, accusing them of self-interest.
“You said Peter Obi will be president. President where? Some of you support people you don’t know, just out of emotion,” Wike said.
“He was governor for eight years. He never conducted local government elections — never. Nigerians weren’t angry. Nigerians were happy that he refused to conduct local government elections. Eight good years, he was governor. And you call that democracy? Only one man was governor of the whole state and all the local governments.”
Wike’s comments came days after opposition parties adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a coalition platform to challenge President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
His remarks reignited debate over whether Peter Obi conducted local government elections during his tenure as governor of Anambra.
BACKGROUND
Before the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling on local government autonomy in July 2024, state governors had sweeping control over local councils.
It was common practice for state governments to withhold LG funds and install caretaker committees instead of holding elections.
The apex court has since ruled that allocations from the federation account must be paid directly to local governments, bypassing the states in a bid to strengthen democratic governance at the grassroots.
Peter Obi served as governor of Anambra from March 2006 to March 2014, with interruptions due to court rulings and impeachment.
VERIFYING THE CLAIM
CableCheck found that on January 11, 2014, just two months before the end of Peter Obi’s tenure, local government elections were conducted across all 21 LGAs in Anambra.
This marked the first local government election in the state since 1998, breaking a 16-year cycle of caretaker administrations.
At the time, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), the ruling party in the state, won 20 out of 21 local government chairmanship seats and 304 of the 326 (327) councillorship positions.
On January 13, 2014, three days after the elections, Obi swore in the newly elected council chairpersons and urged them to work with Willie Obiano, then governor-elect of the state.
CableCheck also found that the claim had previously been fact-checked after Reno Omokri, a former presidential aide, made a similar assertion on July 12, 2024.
VERDICT
The claim that Peter Obi never conducted local government elections in Anambra is false.
