Precious Nwonu, Enugu

Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has said his relationship with former governor Peter Obi remains cordial despite their disagreements over politics and economic issues.

Soludo made this known during an interview with BBC News Igbo on Monday, saying the two families maintained close personal ties even though they supported different political interests.

“Peter Obi and I are good friends. Our two families are on good terms. His wife gave birth to my child in the divine water, my wife gave birth to his child in the confirmation. But when it comes to politics, give me mine, give him his. It’s politics that is being done,” he said.

The governor explained that their political differences became evident during the Anambra governorship election, when Obi backed a candidate of his choice while Soludo pursued his own political ambition.

“He has someone he thinks should be the governor of Anambra. I am also listening. He supported the person he wanted. But I won by the grace of God,” Soludo said.

His remarks come amid renewed exchanges between the two politicians over Obi’s record as governor and the financial state of Anambra when he left office in 2014.

The relationship between their families also became a subject of public discussion in September after Obi said he and his wife were godparents to Soludo’s children.

However, Daniel Ezeigwe, media aide to the Anambra First Lady, Nonye Soludo, challenged the account, explaining that she was the confirmation godmother to Obi’s daughter, while Obi’s wife, Margaret, was the baptismal godmother to one of Soludo’s daughters.

During the BBC interview, Soludo also clarified his controversial 2022 comments about Obi’s chances in the 2023 presidential election, saying he did not simply predict that the former governor would lose.

He explained that his argument was that Obi’s decision to contest as a third-force candidate would divide opposition votes, particularly those of the Peoples Democratic Party, and give the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Tinubu, an advantage.

“No, no, I didn’t say he wouldn’t win. What I said was that it is impossible for someone who is a presidential candidate of a party to not even write a letter saying he is running,” Soludo said.

He added that he had communicated his concerns directly to Obi before the election.

“In fact, I also wrote to him that his participation would take away a lot of votes from the PDP and make it easier for Tinubu to win,” he said.

Soludo further argued that bringing opposition parties together would not necessarily guarantee victory against an incumbent government.

“Even if you have a united opposition, it still does not guarantee you get to defeat an incumbent. But that is even the starting point,” he said.

The governor also recalled inviting Obi to join the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in March 2022 to contest the presidency.

According to Soludo, their initial discussions were focused on mobilising the Igbo people rather than simply pursuing political office.

“It was me myself who invited him to APGA so he could run, early March 2022 at Nnamdi Azikiwe University,” he said.

He added that political alliances should be built on prior consultations and a shared understanding of objectives.

“We deliberate first before going into an alliance before seeking power. You don’t just get power in Nigeria like that,” Soludo said.

In November 2022, Soludo published an article titled History Beckons and I Will Not Be Silent, in which he questioned Obi’s presidential ambition and declared that the former Anambra governor could not win the 2023 election.

“Peter Obi knows that he can’t and won’t win,” Soludo wrote in the article.