The Coalition of United Political Parties, CUPP, has blamed the pitfalls recorded in the just-concluded governorship election in Edo State on politicians’ desperation, saying most politicians in the country represent anti-democratic forces.

CUPP, in a statement signed by its national publicity secretary, Comrade Mark Adebayo, said politicians are the ones engaging in electoral malpractices due to their desperation, not the electoral body.

“The Edo state election was a further dent in our country’s image as a democracy. Our elections have become a situation where the party that can rig best wins elections because almost all of them are involved in rigging their way through. It’s such a shame!

“It is glaring that what happened in Edo didn’t add value to our democracy. If the process was less than transparent, as many field observers have declared, the results remain questionable.

“ However, it is becoming more evident that politicians, more than INEC, are substantially responsible for election malpractices, which is a big threat to our democracy. Those who contest elections in Nigeria are not committed to the fundamental tenets of democracy.

“At best, most of them represent antidemocratic forces with a severe lack of patriotic principles. Many in power today behave like enemies of the people by inflicting horrific pains on the citizens while at the same time living so large”

CUPP also challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC to clear the air on the allegations raised about the conduct of the poll.

It was noted that the allegation that borders on the collation of the results needed to be cleared because its reputation was at stake.

CUPP explained that the way the Edo governorship election result collations were conducted leaves so much to be desired, and many questions regarding the integrity of the process remain unanswered.