Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has clarified allegations that his recent charitable donations overwhelmingly favoured the South-East region.
The clarification came through his former campaign spokesman and National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, Dr Yunusa Tanko, following an online debate sparked by a report from the data and artificial intelligence platform, StatisSense.
According to StatisSense, Obi spent N540m on donations between January and July 2025, with the South-East cornering the lion’s share.
The figures showed that Anambra alone received N260m, while Enugu followed with N120m, making a combined N415m for the South-East out of the N540m total.
The breakdown indicated Obi’s philanthropy extended to five geopolitical zones, with South-West excluded.
The donations were as follows: South-East: N415m, North-West: N60m, North-Central: N60m, South-South: N35m and North-East: N6m.
Major beneficiaries in the South-East included the College of Nursing Sciences, Amichi (N10m), Paul University Awka (N30m), IHM Health System, Anambra (N100m), and Christ the King College, Onitsha (N50m).
Obi’s philanthropy outside the region covered institutions such as Joseph D. Bagobiri Memorial College, Kafanchan (N20m), Kubwa Anglican Comprehensive Secondary School & Hospital, Abuja (N20m), and UNICAL Faculty of Dentistry, Cross River (N20m).
Reacting to the controversy, Tanko defended Obi, stressing that the donations were personal gestures, not political manoeuvres.
“These donations are personal, and they are on a continuous basis. He has not stopped. So don’t be surprised that eventually the donation may come from the North and supersede that of the South,” he said.
Tanko further challenged Obi’s critics to demand transparency from other political leaders.
He said: “If there’s any other candidate that have done that in his personal capacity, he should bring us his data. They should bring out their donation statistics on their own.”
He also noted that Obi’s interventions cut across regions and were not tied to any campaign.
“These are all personal donations, and we are continuing. We have not stopped. We are asking them to bring their donation that they’ve done, if there’s any,” he added.
