The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has strongly criticised politicians defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), describing their actions as immoral and a betrayal of the electorate.
Speaking on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme monitored by DAILY POST on Monday, CUPP Secretary-General, Peter Ameh, said politicians who defect after winning elections lack shame and respect for the voters who elected them.
Ameh noted that many of the defectors openly campaigned against the APC during elections, only to join the party afterward.
“Those defecting to the APC don’t have shame and respect for the electorate. You contested against this party you are defecting to on the day of the election,” he said.
He questioned the legitimacy of such defections, suggesting that anyone who genuinely believed in the mandate given by voters would not abandon the party platform on which they were elected.
“Except if you feel you rigged your election, because the electorate went to the polls, saw APC, PDP and Labour Party on the ballot and decided to ignore the APC and voted for you,” Ameh stated.
According to him, politicians were elected based on the manifestos and ideologies of their parties, making post-election defections a clear moral failure.
“You were canvassing on the manifesto of your party and now you are moving to another party. This is about morality,” he added.
Ameh, however, expressed hope that Nigerians would eventually rise to defend their democratic choices.
“We hope that one day the people will wake up and determine their own future. They did it in 2023 but there were no structures to defend it. They need to go to the next level and say we do it again. We are not giving up because this country deserves better,” he said.
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