The Comptroller General of Venezuela disqualified last Friday the opposition member María Corina Machado, which means that he will not be able to compete against Nicolás Maduro in the 2024 presidential elections. The decision generated new pressure on the Chavista regime, as the international community reacted strongly to Machado’s disqualification.
(Read also: With disqualifications, Chavismo intensifies pressure in the Nicaraguan style)
The sanction is valid for 15 years, a “punishment” that has already been imposed on other opponents. Presidents of the region, such as Gustavo Petro, rejected the measure. But the opposition leader Machado asked on Tuesday that political leaders move from solidarity to action.
Petro wrote on his Twitter account: “No administrative authority should take away political rights from any citizen”.
“I was surprised by such a quick response from President Petro, which reflects that he is affected. Maduro has wanted to use him as an interlocutor,” Machado said Tuesday during a press conference in Caracas.
Nicolás Maduro: you are not the one who is going to choose the candidate you are going to face in 2024
Machado emphasized that the international community has been forceful regarding his “illegal” disqualification, but that it must go further, with actions.
When asked by EL TIEMPO whether her legal situation could be the reason for more international sanctions to the Maduro administration, Machado assured that it was not the time to focus on it, since the International Criminal Court was carrying out an already very complex process.
(Also read: Venezuela will appeal the ICC decision to investigate crimes against humanity)
What he did reiterate is that the primaries, which began as a local process, have now gained greater value since the Comptroller’s decision. “Nicolás Maduro, you are not the one who is going to choose the candidate you are going to face in 2024,” said Machado, who this Wednesday will announce the names of his campaign team.
Mentioning the summit that Petro held in Bogotá on Venezuela, and in which more than 20 countries participated, the opposition member -from the Vente Venezuela party- assured that it was a challenge for the leaders to pressure chavismo to allow fair elections, that include the participation of Venezuelans abroad.
“Presidents have to make sure that Venezuelans abroad vote.
We are willing to negotiate for the exit of the regime,” Machado stressed, adding that “the international community prepare for the great defeat of Nicolás Maduro.”
Primary elections
The Venezuelan opposition plans to hold an internal election on October 22. This will be manual and self-managed, since the sector gave up having the support of the National Electoral Council in the face of the recent changes in rectors promoted by Chavismo.
So far there are 13 candidates, of which three are politically disabled: María Corina Machado, Henrique Capriles and Freddy Superlano.
According to some opinion polls, Machado leads the intention of votes with more than 50 percent.
ANA MARIA RODRIGUEZ BRAZON
WEATHER CORRESPONDENT
CARACAS
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