Newly elected councilors will be taking oath of office on May 17, the Local Government Authority (LGA) announced today. 

An LGA official said that the newly elected councilors will be sworn in on the day that the five-year term of incumbent councilors end. This is because a council's term is five years as per the Decentralization Act. 

Incumbent councilors were sworn in on May 17, 2021. Hence, the now elected councilors will take oath of office on May 17, Sunday. 

The official said that the swearing in ceremony will be scheduled based on availability of judges to officiate. Councils will also be consulted in confirming the times, they added. 

The Women's Development Committee (WDC) elections were also held last Saturday. However, those elected for WDCs are not required to be sworn in. Instead, committee agreements will be signed during the council oath taking ceremony. 

A total of 1362 officials were elected through Saturday's polls. This includes 681 council members and 681 WDC members. 

The provisional results of Saturday's Local Council Elections are yet to be announced.