Venezuela: Maduro installs his power in Parliament, Guaido promises to resist

The party of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro moved on Tuesday, January 5 at the helm of Parliament, the only institution until then in the hands of the opposition which had boycotted the legislative elections in December, believing that the guarantees of transparency were not met.

Despite a record abstention and the rejection of the results by much of the international community, the ruling Socialist United Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and its allies will occupy 256 of the 277 seats in the unicameral parliament.

Read also: Venezuela: the neighborhood canteens of Caracas threatened by the Chavist power

American diplomacy had called the legislative elections a

"political farce"

, the European Union did not consider it

"credible"

, and many South American countries criticized the lack of

"transparency"

and the absence

of " international observers ”

.

Only Russia, along with Cuba, praised

“transparent”

elections

.

Recognized by more than fifty countries as interim president of Venezuela, opposition leader Juan Guaido promised to resist and to ensure the continuity of the work of parliamentarians elected in 2015. Opposition members approved on December 26 the

"continuity"

of the former National Assembly which will function through a

"delegated commission until free presidential and parliamentary elections" take place

.

"The constitutional continuity of Parliament is not a whim, it is a duty

(...)

since there was no election,"

said Juan Guaido in a video posted on social networks.

Inflation of 4,000% over one year

However,

"this administrative continuity has no constitutional legal foundations"

, underlines the political scientist Jesus Castillo-Molleda.

The director of the Datanalisis polling institute, Luis Vicente Leon, wonders whether this continuity

"will or will not allow the maintenance of international support"

for the opposition and Juan Guaido.

Outgoing US President Donald Trump has been Juan Guaido's main ally.

Under his administration, the White House imposed heavy financial sanctions on Venezuela and its state oil company PDVSA in an attempt to oust Nicolas Maduro from power.

For the socialist leader, described as a

“dictator”

by the American administration,

“Donald Trump's policy on Venezuela has failed miserably”

.

He has already made several calls for dialogue to the future resident of the White House, Democrat Joe Biden.

"A significant part of the opposition has adopted the extremist vision imposed by Washington during the Trump period (...) This era is coming to an end and we will see how this part of the opposition will react"

, declared Nicolas Maduro in a TV interview.

Read also: Venezuela: after the legislative elections, the fragile response of the opposition

In a country stifled by galloping inflation (+ 4,000% over one year), paralyzed in endless queues to fill up with gasoline, tired of the lack of water and gas supplies, and overwhelmed by brutal power cuts, Juan Guaido seems to have lost the popular support he enjoyed when he proclaimed himself president in January 2019. Through a symbolic consultation organized after the boycotted elections in December, he failed to revive an opposition disappointed with its inability to overthrow the Maduro regime which enjoys the unwavering support of the army.

The symbolic ballot, organized for a week on the Internet and in person, hardly mobilized, even if the opposition assures that more than 6 million Venezuelans took part.

For the director of the Center for Political Studies of the Catholic University Andrés Bello, the presidential duality should

"not continue for long, at least under the terms of 2019"

, when the opposition constitutionally held Parliament.

All the more so, believes the researcher, that Nicolas Maduro

“will use”

the restrictive measures linked to the Covid-19 pandemic to stifle any demonstration, as he did in 2020. Threats of arrest are now looming over- above Juan Guaido, who will no longer be President of Parliament on Tuesday.

In a recent interview with AFP, he refuted any idea of ​​exile despite the threats.

In this game of internal and international pressure, Nicolas Maduro promised a firm hand:

"My pulse will not tremble

," he said.