The Delta House of Assembly on Tuesday declared the Udu Constituency seat vacant, after Collins Ogbetamah, representing the area, defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).

The decision followed the reading of Mr Ogbetamah’s resignation letter, dated June 19, by the speaker of the House of Assembly, Dennis Guwor.

In the letter, Mr Ogbetamah formally notified the house of his defection from the APC to the NDC.

Following deliberations, the majority leader of the assembly, Emeka Nwaobi, invoked relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, moving a motion declaring the seat vacant and requesting the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a by-election.

The motion received unanimous support from lawmakers before the speaker officially declared the seat vacant, affirming that the decision complied fully with constitutional provisions governing legislative defections and vacancies.

During Tuesday’s plenary, the house also passed the State Public and Private Properties Protection Amendment Bill through second reading, after lawmakers overwhelmingly endorsed its general principles and objectives.

The proposed amendment seeks to strengthen property protection, recover public assets, establish an enforcement task force, and collaborate with security agencies across Delta effectively.

Consequently, the speaker referred the amendment bill to the Joint House Committees on Housing, Urban Renewal, Lands and Survey, directing members to submit their report before July 17.

The assembly also received the 2025 audited financial statements and reports of the state’s 25 local government areas from the office of the auditor-general for local government during plenary.

Mr Guwor referred the audit reports to the House Committee on Public Accounts for detailed consideration, reinforcing the assembly’s oversight responsibilities and commitment to accountability across local government administration statewide.

(NAN)