The Anambra State Internal Revenue Service (AIRS) has debunked recent claims by former governor and 2027 presidential aspirant Peter Obi, stating that SABMiller Breweries is not the highest taxpayer in the state.
Obi, during a Labour Party campaign rally in Onitsha on Friday, July 11, had stated that the brewery — built under his administration — was the biggest contributor to the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
“You might have heard that the only thing they said I did was to build a brewery, but the same brewery gave employment to thousands of people.
The brewery I built is the highest taxpayer in the state and boosts the IGR,” Obi told the crowd while drumming support for Labour Party’s governorship candidate, Dr. George Moghalu, ahead of the November 8, 2025 election.
However, AIRS Chairman, Dr. Greg Ezeilo, dismissed the statement as misleading, presenting official data that places SABMiller in sixth position among corporate taxpayers in Anambra for the years 2023 and 2024.
“A double-check on the last two years’ data on tax collections across corporate bodies, including SABMiller (but excluding federal institutions), showed the company comes a distant sixth behind Fidelity Bank Plc,” Ezeilo stated.
According to AIRS, SABMiller contributed an average of ₦28 million per month in 2023 and ₦26.62 million per month in 2024, totalling about ₦656.5 million over two years. This contribution, while significant, falls short of top rankings when compared to other corporate entities in the state.
The agency emphasized that the state’s IGR has significantly improved, now averaging ₦4 billion monthly, with a peak of ₦10.5 billion in May 2025 — a record high in the state’s history.
“The clarification became necessary to situate the former governor’s claims properly and to provide undiluted information to the public,” Ezeilo added.
The AIRS statement underscores the importance of accurate economic reporting, especially from public figures, as fiscal data continues to shape public discourse and political narratives.
This development comes amid Obi’s increased public visibility as he positions for the 2027 presidential race under the Labour Party platform.
FACT-CHECKING:
ANAMBRA STATE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE (AiRS) DEBUNKS PETER OBI’S FALSE CLAIMS ON SABMILER BEING THE HIGHEST TAX PAYER IN ANAMBRA pic.twitter.com/vqXPvLlduN
— Anambra State New Media (@AnambraNewMedia) July 17, 2025
