Soludo denies collecting bribe in his rant against his former friend
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Charles Soludo has denied rumour he was paid $28 million bribe to rubbish Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi who was Anambra Governor when he first contested for the post in 2010 under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
That year, Soludo lost to Obi who ran on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) which enabled him to serve a total eight years from 2006 to 2014.
Soludo defected to APGA in 2013 and on its banner became Anambra Governor on 17 March 2022, taking over from Obi’s immediate successor Willie Obiano.
Soludo on 14 November 2022 published History Beckons and I Will Not Be Silent (Part 1) where he speculated Obi cannot win the presidential election in 2023.
He did not accuse Obi of stealing from the treasury but downplayed his achievements as Anambra Governor.
The long writeup generated widespread reactions, particularly on social media, most of which criticised Soludo for his unprovoked tirade against Obi.
Ohanaeze issued a statement accusing Soludo of having been hired by the opposition for a hatchet job to run down his former friend.
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Soludo probably hired by another presidential candidate to pull down Obi – Ohanaeze
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Soludo says he didn’t collect bribe for the hatchet job
Soludo reacted to the criticism and bribe allegation on Thursday after the thanksgiving mass for Most Rev. Paulinus Ezeokafor in celebration of his 70th birthday at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, Awka where he met Obi.
“If I had truly received $28 million to blackmail my brother, Peter Obi, I should be extremely wealthy as of today,” Soludo said when he fielded questions from journalists, per reporting by The PUNCH.
“For those forging blackmail and all that, including the one they said I collected bribe to say what I said, I asked them to bring it so I will use it to construct roads for Anambra people.
“If Soludo is into bribery, I would have been a multi-trillionaire now.
“Today is very special. When we came into the service, it was the first time, Obi and I are meeting at a public event and in a Catholic Church which the two of us belong to. I think it was divine.
“When I came in, I quickly went to where he sat and hugged him, people watched with bewilderment as if it was a drama, asking if it was not the same people quarrelling.”
Soludo explained they have political differences, saying he spoke with Obi twice the previous night and politics has not crept into their relationship as brothers.
“There is no rift between Obi and me at a personal level. Nobody snatched each other’s wife. What appears to be the rift between us is fundamental political differences. Nothing else.
“On the fundamental differences we have, we are going to meet in the next few weeks. We’ve agreed to discuss and iron out our differences.”
 presidential candidate Peter Obi){kind=link}