Anambra State Government has disclosed that Governor Charles Soludo’s administration is still repaying loans and other debts incurred by previous administrations, including those of former governors Peter Obi and Willie Obiano.

The Commissioner for Finance in the state, Izuchukwu Okafor, disclosed this during a podcast.

The podcast was moderated by Ejimofor Opara, a special assistant to Governor Soludo on new media.

In the podcast, Mr Opara questioned why details in the budget performance reports indicated that the Anambra State Government has been servicing loans despite claims it had not borrowed before.

In response, Mr Okafor reiterated that Mr Soludo’s administration had not borrowed from any commercial bank since taking office but had continued to service loans inherited from previous governments.

“It’s on record, you know, that this administration has not borrowed a kobo from any commercial bank since the inception of this administration,” he said.

The commissioner then explained that deductions were made from the state’s Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAC) funds every month to service loans obtained by previous administrations.

“Every month during our FAC meetings, and when you see the schedule of FAC, you will notice there were substantial, significant deductions from our own FAC because of loans previously borrowed by previous administrations,” he said.

Mr Okafor claimed some of the loans were obtained during the administrations of Mr Obi and the immediate past governor of the state, Willie Obiano.

“These loans were borrowed, you know, even during the time of Peter Obi and Willie Obiano, (and other) past governors,” he said.

The finance commissioner boasted that Mr Soludo’s administration had “significantly” reduced the state’s debt burden despite not borrowing any loans himself.

“We have been able to manage the debt, the state debt, very well, that we have brought it down by more than 83 per cent as of today. We’ve been able to repay back most of these loans,” he said.

He said the administration had also cleared several “legacy debts,” including unpaid contracts, gratuity arrears and pension arrears.

“But I will give you an example for our domestic debt. There’s what we call legacy debts, you know. That’s, the contracts that were not paid, the gratuity arrears, pension arrears, we’ve been able to clear all that,” he said.

The official also said the state’s domestic debt was “near-zero balance” at the moment.

What about external debts?
Mr Okafor claimed that, on the state’s external debts, some repayments were automatically deducted from federal allocations due to the state in accordance with the terms and conditions attached to the loans.

“Before they remit Anambra’s own allocation, they will deduct it as such, because most of them, World Bank loans and other loans, they committed.”

The commissioner also disclosed that the state had recently paid off one of its debts.

“This administration has been able to create more by paying off, you know, the backlog of numerous debts inherited from previous governments, starting from the time of Peter Obi,” he added.

Brianna Cronin, a 29-year-old Australian ecologist, spent her last terrifying minutes clinging to a sheer rock face 80m above the ground after she fell while visiting a famous Bali cliff, only to fall again, this time to her death.

I’mThe tourist who was on a solo travel adventure, tragically died at the famous Kelingking Beach, on the Indonesian island of Nusa Penida, on Saturday morning.

The spectacular rock formation – which resembles the head of a giant Tyrannosaurus Rex – has become one of Bali’s most recognisable landmarks and attracts thousands of foreigners every year.

The University of Queensland graduate was on the infamously steep and narrow track to explore the landmark when she slipped on loose rock and became stuck on the southern side of the cliff.

She was then spotted stranded precariously on a ledge below the path by another tourist, unable to get back to the track and too high to descend to the beach.

It is unclear if she was injured at that point, but the tourist alerted one of the local lifeguards who monitor the rugged and treacherous beach below about 7.45am.

A plan was being made to reach Ms. Cronin when she sadly fell a second time while waiting to be rescued. She hit the sand of Kelingking Beach and died at the scene, suffering multiple fractures from the fall down the rocky cliff.

Another tourist had spotted Ms Cronin stranded on the cliff face before she fell a second time, landing on the beach

‘The views are spectacular but it is downright dangerous and irresponsibly managed,’ one visitor wrote on Tripadvisor in 2019.

‘At least half of the ”path” is sheer, vertical drops, requiring climbing, hanging, and holding on to broken side rails made literally of sticks and bamboo.

Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, has said the insurgency in the state destroyed more than 5,000 school structures and forced about 2.2 million children out of school at the peak of the crisis.

Zulum stated this on Sunday in Maiduguri while inaugurating several completed projects across the state.

The governor said the destruction of schools, coupled with the loss of teachers and school administrators, severely disrupted education in Borno.

“The insurgency destroyed more than 5,000 school structures, while at its peak, an estimated 2.2 million children were out of school, with fewer than 500,000 enrolled,” Zulum said.

“Many teachers and school administrators lost their lives in the course of duty.”

He said his administration’s efforts to rebuild schools went beyond the construction of physical infrastructure, stressing that the objective was also to restore access to education and confidence in communities affected by the insurgency.

“Today, we have formally commissioned four important projects: the Larawaram Community Senior Secondary School; the Shehu Sanda Kyarimi I Primary and Junior Secondary School; the post office nine-span flyover; and the dualisation of the 2.5-kilometre road, together with five kilometres of drainage, from Budum Tandari Junction to Kasuwan Shanu,” he said.

Zulum added: “Rebuilding schools is beyond constructing physical structures. It is about restoring access to education, rebuilding confidence in our communities and providing our children with the opportunity to secure a better future.”

According to him, the state government invested N46,987,069,675.33 in basic and secondary education between the 2025 and 2026 fiscal years.

“Today’s commissioning forms part of this broader investment, alongside 136 projects that have been completed and are awaiting commissioning,” he said.

The governor said his administration had continued to expand and improve infrastructure at public pre-primary and primary schools across the state.

He said the number of usable classrooms had increased to 5,792, while usable Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, WASH, facilities rose to 4,563.

At the senior secondary level, Zulum said the number of functional schools increased from 34 across eight local government areas in 2019 to 129 across 25 LGAs by 2026.

He also said school enrolment increased from 766,551 learners in 2019 to 1,801,295 in 2026, representing an increase of more than one million learners in seven years.

Zulum attributed the growth to expanded access to education, improved public confidence and sustained investment in the sector.