By IFEANYI OLANNYE

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has won all the 25 local government chairmanship seats in the Delta Local Government election held across the state on Saturday.

The party also clinched 499 of the 500 councillorship seats, losing one to the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in Oshimili North Local Government Area (LGA).

Dr Jerry Agbaike, the Chief Electoral Officer and Chairman, Delta State Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC), announced the results at the commission’s headquarters in Asaba on Sunday.

Agbaike said election was, however, not held in Udu LGA as the PDP chairmanship candidate was returned unopposed.

The DSIEC chairman also issued Certificates of Return to the elected LG chairmen to mark the end of the exercise.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Gov. Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta and other PDP chiefs had earlier predicted victory for the candidates of the party.

After casting his vote on Saturday, Oborevwori said he was confident of victory in an election he described as transparent, free and fair.

The governor also expressed support for the LG autonomy, claiming he did not, for this reason, constitute caretaker committees at the end of the tenure of the immediate past chairmen.

“The Supreme Court judgment has no effect here in Delta State because we don’t tamper with local government funds.

“As a former speaker, we were at the forefront of the issue of autonomy for the legislature and the judiciary. So, that judgment does not affect us here in Delta State.

“In the past, the state government cleared monies owed by local governments in the state.

“The Joint Accounts Allocation Committee (JAAC) is just a monitoring process to ensure transparency,” Oborevwori said. (NAN)

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