The Delta State House of Assembly has declared the Udu Constituency seat vacant following the defection of lawmaker Collins Ogbetamah from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
The decision was taken on Tuesday after the Speaker of the House, Dennis Guwor, read Ogbetamah’s resignation letter dated June 19.
In the letter, the lawmaker formally notified the Assembly of his decision to leave the APC and join the NDC.
Following deliberations, the Majority Leader, Emeka Nwaobi, cited the relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and moved a motion declaring the seat vacant.
He also urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a by-election to fill the vacant seat.
The motion received the unanimous support of lawmakers, after which the Speaker officially declared the Udu Constituency seat vacant.
Meanwhile, the Delta State House of Assembly also passed the State Public and Private Properties Protection Amendment Bill for second reading.
The proposed amendment seeks to strengthen the protection of public and private properties, facilitate the recovery of public assets, establish an enforcement task force and improve collaboration with security agencies.
Speaker Guwor referred the bill to the Joint House Committees on Housing, Urban Renewal, Lands and Survey, directing the committees 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.
The Speaker referred the reports to the House Committee on Public Accounts for further consideration.
