The Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Emomotimi Guwor, has stated that declaring the seat of lawmaker after defection is constitutional.

The Speaker, therefore, exonerated the House of Assembly from any complicity over the declaration of the seat of the Lawmaker, representing Udu Constituency, Vacant.

The Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Nkem Nweke, in a statement, indicated that the declaration of the seat of the Lawmaker vacant after he dumped the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, to join the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, is a constitutional matter and should not be seen as a political one.

He stressed that the decision was taken strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, which remains the supreme law governing the conduct of all public office holders, including members of the Delta State House of Assembly.

Section 109 sub section one, according to the statement, provides that a member of the house of assembly shall vacate his seat, if having been elected on the platform of a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which he was elected.

The speaker cautioned against heating up the polity, saying the Delta State House of Assembly will continue to discharge its constitutional responsibilities with courage, fairness and fidelity to the rule of law.