A total of seven commissioners and the Chief of Staff to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Festus Agas, have resigned their positions in Delta, depleting the state executive council.
Their resignations may have been triggered by Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act 2022, which stipulates that political appointees must resign their appointments before participating in the 2023 general elections, either as delegate or elective office position seeker.
Most of the affected cabinet members are known to be nursing ambitions for elective positions ahead of the 2023 polls.
Though while some resigned to vie for elective positions, others did so to participate as statutory delegates at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) convention.
Those who have resigned their appointments are: Evelyn Oboro, Basil Ganagana, Christian Onogba, Julius Egbedi, Ovie Oghoore, Jonathan Ukodhiko and Chika Ossai.
Oboro resigned as Commissioner for Water Resources Development to seek ticket into the House of Representatives (Okpe, Sapele and Uvwie Constituency).
He had served as a member of the Green Chamber and one-time Chairman of Uvwie Local Government Area.
Ganagana, a former Delta State House of Assembly Deputy Speaker, served in the Okowa-led Exco as the Commissioner for Transport.
Sources close to the former lawmaker disclosed that he is running for the Patani/Bomadi Federal Constituency. Ukodhiko, the Commissioner for Power and Energy, seeking the Isoko Federal Constituency ticket.
Onogba resigned as Commissioner for the Environment to seek the ticket for the Ethiope West State Constituency (House of Assembly).
Ossai, the Commissioner for Primary Education resigned to run for the Ndokwa East Constituency in the State Assembly.
It was unclear if Egbedi and Oghoore, resigned their appointments as commissioners for Project Monitoring and Audit and Agriculture and Natural Resources to seek elective positions in 2023.
More commissioners are expected to resign their positions as statutory delegates for PDP, The Nation learnt.
It was, however, learnt that the governor has a pact with the former appointees, including his special advisers and executive assistants to return to their duties after the primaries of the PDP.
Our reporter could not ascertain if Agas, who has removed his personal belongings from office, resigned to pursue his governorship ambitions.
He once served Secretary to the State (SSG).