CARACAS — The head of the delegation representing the opposition of the Unitary Platform, Gerard Blydedemanded the regime Nicolas Maduro that fulfills the Agreement of Barbados signed in October 2023, and called for discussion of the electoral schedule for the presidential elections in Venezuela, scheduled for the second half of 2024.
Gerardo Blyde, in a press conference, reported that together with other unitary leaders he met on February 19 with the representation of Maduro headed by Jorge Rodríguez, with the presence of that of Norway, led by Dag Nylander, within the framework of the negotiations. , and gave them the Platform’s proposal for an electoral schedule to be discussed together.
“We should not be opening consultations to the entire world (…) but rather certainties for elections,” said Blyde in reference to the meetings called by the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, who is also head of the official negotiating delegation, to set a schedule without the participation of the Platform.
Although he was cautious in his statements, Blyde noted that “the discussion went far beyond just talking about when the elections could be held” and that “both parties committed to having a climate of peace so that there can be clean and transparent elections.” .
The Platform spokesperson pointed out: “We want to be very clear: neither this delegation, nor the Unitary Platform nor the unitary candidate María Corina Machado have separated themselves from the electoral route. We demand compliance with the Barbados Agreement.”
He also stated that along with the document on violations of the Barbados Agreement, among which is the failure to lift Machado’s illegal disqualification, the Platform also recorded another nine-page document referring to the repressive escalation in recent months.
“The escalation, far from being reversed, has continued to increase,” he said in reference to the recent arrests of political leaders and activist Rocío San Miguel.
The “consensus” of the ruling party on the schedule
During the press conference, Jorge Rodríguez announced the position of the representation of Maduro, who aspires to remain in power for another six years.
“There have been a wide range of date proposals” that “will allow for in-depth analysis and, probably, achieve a consensus formula,” according to Jorge Rodríguez, who chairs the National Assembly and the government delegation in the negotiations.
“The delegation of the (opposition coalition) Unitary Platform made a general proposal regarding the development of the presidential election this year 2024. We receive the proposal that will be attended to with the same force, the same vigor with which all the proposals have been attended. proposals that have been presented so far,” according to the representative of Chavismo.
The 2024 presidential elections still do not have a date, although they have been held by “democratic tradition”, according to Blyde, in the first days of December, but according to the text of the signed Agreement the elections would be held in the second half of the year, with observation of the European Union.
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Source: With information from AFP, AlbertoNews, TalCual, El Nacional
