Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, has refuted claims that he refunded over ₦500 billion to the state government as part of an alleged secret deal to escape prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Speculation had been widespread in Delta State suggesting that Okowa made the refund discreetly in order to secure immunity from legal action, retain political relevance, and negotiate leniency with anti-corruption officials.
However, Okowa’s Chief Press Secretary, Olise Ifeajirika, dismissed the allegations, describing them as entirely unfounded.
“There is no truth in the claims that my principal refunded any such money. The EFCC is free to carry out its investigation,” Ifeajirika stated.
He explained that while Okowa had been invited and questioned by the EFCC with supporting documents, he responded appropriately, and the matter remains under investigation.
“Until the EFCC concludes its findings and a case is formally established, the issue of refunds or prosecution does not arise,” he added.
The rumors gained traction following the recent defection of both Okowa and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to the All Progressives Congress (APC), leaving the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a weakened position in the state.
Amid ongoing political shifts, Governor Oborevwori on Tuesday visited President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. He arrived alone around 3:45 p.m. and proceeded into a closed-door meeting with the president.
This visit marked his first official engagement with Tinubu since his dramatic defection to the APC.
Oborevwori’s switch, announced on April 23, 2025, made him the first sitting Delta governor to leave the PDP for the APC since the return of democracy in 1999. His defection, along with that of Deputy Governor Monday Onyeme, several commissioners, local council leaders, and the party’s grassroots machinery, followed a private political strategy session in Asaba.
The mass defection, led by Okowa himself—who was the PDP’s vice-presidential candidate in the 2023 elections—signals a significant shift in the political balance in the South-South region.
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