Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, a former Governor of Abia State has strongly refuted a report claiming he has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Ikpeazu also denied link to alleged diversion of ₦1.9 trillion, saying report was inaccurate and misleading.
A statement issued on Sunday by his Media Adviser, Enyinnaya Appolo said the ex-governor remains a member of the PDP.
The statement said, ““Dr. Ikpeazu remains a committed member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and indeed attended the most recent meeting of party stakeholders on November 18, 2025.”
The statement faulted a newspaper’s claim that Ikpeazu defected to the APC in April 2024, noting that “a simple verification from party officials or available public records would have clarified this.”
Reacting to the allegations that a KPMG audit indicted the former governor for diverting ₦1.9 trillion, the statement said,“For the avoidance of doubt, no such KPMG audit exists. What the current Abia State administration commissioned was a process review, not a financial audit.”
The statement referenced a March 2, 2024 report by KPMG addressed to the Abia State Governor and signed by Saheed Olawuyi, Partner, Enterprise Risk Services, which was titled ‘Final Report: Provision of Process Review Services to Abia State.’
Quoting directly from the document, the statement clarified that, “This assignment was not performed by us in the capacity of a statutory auditor. Hence, this is not any form of financial statements audit of ABSG or any entity listed in the report.”
It further stressed that KPMG “did not conduct an inquiry or trial, sit as a tribunal or commission of inquiry, perform any adjudicatory function, or determine whether any individual was guilty or innocent of any offence.”
On the ₦1.9 trillion figure reported, the statement said, “The figure quoted in the publication does not align with the total revenue of Abia State under Dr. Ikpeazu’s administration,” adding that publicly available records under the SFTAS framework and the Federal Ministry of Finance contradict the claim.
It maintained that Dr. Ikpeazu has no pending corruption case anywhere, saying, “Dr. Ikpeazu has not been indicted, charged, or prosecuted in any court of law on this matter or on any corruption issue since leaving office.”
The statement urged the newspaper to publish a correction, especially as Dr. Ikpeazu is “a former Governor currently nominated for national service.”
It concluded that “Dr. Ikpeazu served Abia State diligently for eight uninterrupted years and left office without legal or administrative blemish,” and called for better verification in future reports.
Ikpeazu makes clarification on defection to APC, funds diversion claims
