Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa

Ifeanyichukwu Arthur Okowa (born 8 July 1959) is a Nigerian doctor and politician who served as Governor of Delta State from May 2015 to May 2023.

He was a member of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) and served as the party’s vice presidential candidate in the 2023 presidential election alongside Atiku Abubakar.

Born in Owa-Alero in 1959, Okowa graduated from the University of Ibadan in 1981 with an MBBS degree.

After his undergraduate education, he worked as a medical officer for several years before entering politics.

Okowa first established himself in local politics before entering the state cabinet of Governor James Ibori in 1999.

After leaving cabinet in 2006, Okowa made a failed primary bid for governor before returning to the state cabinet under his former opponent Emmanuel Uduaghan.

By 2011, Okowa moved to national politics and successfully ran for Senator for Delta North.

After four years in the Senate, he returned to Delta and was elected governor by a wide margin in 2015, becoming the first ethnic Ika or person from the state’s north to be governor.

Okowa was later re-elected by a similar margin in 2019.

Born at Owa-Alero in Ika North-East Local Government Area of Delta State, he attended Edo College, Benin City (1970–1976), then went on to the University of Ibadan, where he studied medicine and surgery, graduating in 1981 with an MBBS degree.

After leaving the National Youth Service Corps, he worked with the Bendel State Hospitals Management Board as a medical officer.

He entered private practice as director of Victory Medical Centre, Igbanke, in 1986.

Okowa became Secretary to the Ika Local Government and then Chairman of the Ika North-East Local Government Council (1991–1993).

He was Delta North Coordinator of the Grassroots Democratic Movement (GDM).

He joined the PDP in 1998 and assisted in Governor James Ibori’s campaign in 1998/1999.

He served as a commissioner in the Delta State government for Agriculture and Natural Resources (July 1999 – April 2001), Water Resources Development (April 2001 – May 2003), and Health (September 2003 – October 2006).

Okowa resigned to contest in the 2007 Delta State PDP governorship primaries but did not win.

In June 2007, he was appointed Secretary to the Delta State Government.

He was elected Delta North Senatorial candidate in the January 2011 PDP primaries with 942 votes, but the result was challenged by party leaders favoring Marian Amaka Alli; he was re-elected in a rerun with 1,446 votes against 108 votes for Marian Alli.

In the April 2011 election for the Delta North Senatorial seat, Okowa won 98,140 votes, ahead of runner-up Prince Ned Munir Nwoko of the Democratic People’s Party, who won 67,985 votes. Tensions persisted regarding the election in January 2013.

Okowa clinched the gubernatorial ticket in 2015 under the PDP with 406 votes on 8 December 2014.

He won the Delta State Gubernatorial elections in April 2015 with 724,680 votes and was inaugurated on 29 May 2015.

In the 9 March 2019 Governorship election, Okowa, a member of the PDP, received 925,274 votes, defeating the All Progressives Congress candidate, Great Ogboru, who garnered 215,938 votes.

As a sitting governor of Delta State in 2020, he established the University of Delta in Agbor, the University of Science and Technology in Ozoro, and Dennis Osadebe University in Anwai, all in Delta State.

During his first term, his administration announced the partial privatization of the state-owned Delta Line bus company, with 60% sold to GTDC for ₦160 million and 40% retained by the state government. Critics accused fraud, as GTDC’s owner Chidi Ajaere had campaigned for Okowa and the AUPCTRE claimed they offered ₦2 billion but were excluded due to their lower initial bid.

Okowa’s administration faced scrutiny over irregular expenditures, financial misappropriation, and alleged mismanagement in the 2019 Auditor-General’s report, including unaccounted funds and violations of financial regulations.

In November 2024, Okowa was questioned by the EFCC over alleged mismanagement and diversion of 13% derivation funds (N1.3 trillion) for Delta State between 2015 and 2023.

He was honored as Man of the Year 2017 by the Independent Newspaper and received the University of Ibadan’s Alumni of the Year award in 2016 for his lecture on ‘Good Governance for Wealth Creation and Sustainable Development.’

In October 2022, Okowa was conferred the national honor of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) by President Muhammadu Buhari.