Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has called for an investigation into allegations of financial misconduct levelled against the party’s chairman, Julius Abure, by the National Treasurer, Oluchi Opara. Obi spoke at a media briefing on Thursday, February 15, where he provided an account of the funding of the 2023 Obi-Datti Presidential campaign organization.

Obi revealed that the party has initiated the process of auditing its finances for all its activities related to the 2023 general elections. He explained that the party waited until the end of the litigation in November 2023 before starting the auditing process in December 2023.

Obi pointed out that the party is now accounting for its finances in the first quarter of 2024, which is unusual for Nigerian political parties. He added that the party is committed to being accountable and transparent in its financial dealings.

The chairperson of the fundraising team of the campaign organization, Aisha Yesufu, also spoke at the press event. She disclosed that the campaign organization spent over N744,500,000 on court cases following the 2023 presidential election. She also revealed that the campaign organization received donations totaling N595,976,994.

Yesufu emphasized the importance of accountability and transparency in financial dealings. She thanked everyone who donated to the campaign organization and assured them that the money was judiciously used. She disclosed that the campaign organization provided direct and indirect support to over a hundred support groups across all 36 states in Nigeria.

The campaign organization also deployed media-related campaigns that reached over 11 million people, leveraging over 40 radio stations, community outreach, and social media. In addition, campaign materials worth N258,374,330 were procured and distributed across the 36 states and Abuja, and media and radio broadcasting cost N16,432,867.

Other expenses included N10,808,948 for election promotion, N324,381,700 for polling unit agents, bank charges of N1,750,544, and administrative charges of N477,000. The campaign organization also spent N744,500,000 on legal expenses relating to the 2023 presidential election. The candidate himself, Peter Obi, contributed N8,000,000 towards the campaign expenses and N6,000,000 towards legal fees.