Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has said his political disagreements with former governor Peter Obi have not affected their friendship, insisting that their families remain close despite their differences.
Soludo, in an interview with BBC News Igbo on Monday, said the relationship between him and the former Labour Party presidential candidate remained cordial, stressing that their disagreements were strictly political.
“Peter Obi and I are good friends. Our two families are on good terms,” Soludo said.
He added, “But when it comes to politics, give me mine, give him his. It’s politics that is being done.”
The governor said both men supported different candidates during the Anambra governorship election, noting that Obi backed his preferred candidate while he pursued his own political interests.
“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,” he said.
Soludo’s remarks come amid recurring disagreements between the two politicians over Obi’s presidential ambition, his record as Anambra governor and the state’s financial position when he left office in 2014.
The governor also revisited his controversial 2022 article in which he questioned Obi’s chances of winning the 2023 presidential election.
Soludo clarified that he did not predict that Obi would lose, explaining that his argument was that the former governor’s participation in the election would divide opposition votes and improve the chances of the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Tinubu.
“No, no, I didn’t say he wouldn’t win,” Soludo said.
“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 added.
The governor maintained that a united opposition would not necessarily defeat an incumbent president.
“Even if you have a united opposition, it still does not guarantee you get to defeat an incumbent,” he said.
Soludo also disclosed that he personally invited Obi to join the All Progressives Grand Alliance in March 2022 to pursue the presidency.
According to him, their initial discussions centred on mobilising the Igbo people rather than simply seeking political power.
“It was me myself who invited him to APGA so he could run, early March 2022 at Nnamdi Azikiwe University,” he said.
Soludo added that political alliances required strategic deliberations, saying, “You don’t just get power in Nigeria like that.”
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