By Great Imo Jonathan
The argument that “Peter Obi’s record in Anambra does not qualify him to lead Nigeria” ignores one fact: the exact problems collapsing Nigeria today are the same problems he met and solved in Anambra State between 2006 and 2014.
Leadership is not about promises. It is about track record. And Nigeria’s current crisis of insecurity, debt, collapsed schools, failing hospitals, and wasteful governance demands a leader who has already delivered solutions at scale.
Insecurity
Peter Obi took Anambra from kidnap capital to safest State in Nigeria. Before Peter Obi, Anambra was ungovernable. A sitting governor was kidnapped. Government House and the Governor’s Lodge were burnt down. Schools were shut for nearly two years. Kidnapping, armed robbery and political violence were the order of the day. Notable kidnap kingpins like Evans operated with impunity.
Within six months of taking office, Obi changed the equation.
He led from the front, enacted laws to confiscate proceeds of crime, equipped and supported security agencies, and introduced functional community policing in partnership with town unions and traditional institutions.
The result: By the time he left after eight years, the Inspector-General of Nigerian Police publicly declared Anambra “the most improved and safest State in Nigeria” for over five ⁰consecutive years. Former military officers who served in the state under him, including General John Enenche, gave testimony on national TV to the transformation.
This is one of the reasons Nigeria needs him now. Today Nigeria battles banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, and farmer-herder clashes. We need a Commander-in-Chief who understands that security is about funding, intelligence, community partnership, rule of law, and political will, not just rhetoric. Obi has done it before.
His running mate, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, adds to this. As Minister of Defence, Nigeria was stable. As Governor of Kano, he maintained relative peace in a complex state. That is the kind of security experience the ticket brings.
Education
Anambra under Peter Obi went from education collapse to a model State in Nigeria. When Obi took over, many public schools in Anambra had no roofs, no desks, no teachers. He returned mission schools to the churches with funding and autonomy, and gave the remaining public schools the same attention, but with accountability. He provided computers, generators, buses, and learning materials directly to schools.
Outcome: WAEC results in Anambra jumped from near the bottom to No.1 in Nigeria for several years. Anambra students began winning national and international academic competitions. UNESCO and UNICEF cited Anambra as a model for education intervention.
National application: Nigeria today has 20 plus million out-of-school children and some universities on strike. We need to decentralise, fund, and measure performance in education, exactly the Obi model.
Health
He invested in primary healthcare and in saving lives. Obi rehabilitated and equipped over 300 health centres and general hospitals. He provided ambulances, drugs and medical equipment. Maternal and child mortality dropped in Anambra because facilities were functional and accessible.
He won awards from Word Health Organisation, WHO, and other multilateral agencies for health performance and for meeting MDG targets.
National application: Nigeria’s health system is collapsing. We need primary healthcare that works, not white-elephant projects. Obi’s record shows he knows how to deploy resources to save lives at the base.
Infrastructures and Ecology
Anambra under Obi completed about 900 kilometres of roads, especially rural roads and the very important Onitsha six lanes, the first in the South-East, he built 28 bridges, gave serious attention to erosion control projects that previous administrations abandoned. He tackled gully erosion with direct intervention and partnerships with World Bank, EU, and FG.
Most importantly, he did it without fanfare or inflated contracts. Projects were completed, audited, and handed over.
National application: Nigeria needs infrastructure, but we cannot borrow our way into more debt. We need a leader who will prioritise critical roads, power, and ecological projects and deliver them at real cost. Not inflated road contracts for roads that are not prioritise but are awarded without tender and bidding even at three times their supposed cost to friends and family members.
Economy and Prudent Management
Peter Obi paid Anambra’s debt, created savings, improved state IGR 10 times without increasing burden on the people. This is where the “Anambra model” is most relevant to Nigeria today.
When Obi took over, Anambra was heavily indebted. Until he left office as Governor he never borrowed one Naira for the State.
Rather he paid off existing debts that he met, outstanding pensions/gratuities. He saved money for the state and still invested $30m in SABMiller brewery, which today employs thousands of Anambra people, generates taxes and profit from company annual returns.
He also had $50 million in Diamond Bank, another $50 million in Access Bank and another $55 million in Fidelity Bank. In addition he saved N12 billion each in all these banks outside the dollar components; all interest yielding accounts that keeps multiplying for the State. All investments still yield dividends for Anambra today.
As I said earlier, he grew the state IGR by over 10 times without imposing crushing taxes on citizens. He did it by blocking leakages, digitising collection, and supporting SMEs.
He cut cost of governance, reduced convoys, stopped frivolous spending, and ran a lean government.
He won multiple awards for transparency and prudence from international bodies and multilateral agencies, and attracted foreign direct investment to the State.
National application: Nigeria is drowning in debt, with 96% of revenue servicing debt. We have leakages, subsidy fraud and waste. We need a leader with private sector experience and self-discipline who understands cash flow, savings, investment, and production. Obi built businesses before politics. He understands what SMEs and ordinary Nigerians face.
Rule of Law and Integrity
Twelve years after he left office there has been zero allegations against him. For eight years in office and 12 plus years out of office, no credible corruption case has been linked to Peter Obi. He restored rule of law in Anambra, respected court orders, and handed over peacefully.
In a country where public office is seen as an avenue to loot, these records matter. Investors, multilateral agencies, and citizens trust leaders with integrity.
The pattern is clear. The problems Peter Obi solved in Anambra are the same problems killing Nigeria now. Insecurity; he made Anambra the safest. Collapsed education; he made Anambra No.1. Broken health; he rebuilt 300 plus facilities. Debt and waste; he saved, invested, and paid debts. Poor IGR; he grew it 10 times without hurting the poor. FDI; he attracted partners and multilateral support.
Nigeria does not need another experiment. We need a leader who has faced these exact challenges, applied solutions and has the receipts to show for it.
Leadership is the ability to turn a failing state around and hand it over better. By that standard, Anambra under Peter Obi is the proof of concept.
Nigeria is a bigger Anambra. And now is the time to apply the blueprint.
Jonathan is a business and personal development consultant
