Andrés Caleca, former president of the National Electoral Council, held a meeting with members of different political organizations, unions and civil society of Lara State in which he spoke about the importance of defending the vote as an instrument for change to achieve the dismissal of Nicolás Maduro.
By La Patilla – Yanitza Martínez
Oct 05, 2022
For Andrés Caleca, although there are pockets of supposed prosperity in the main cities of Venezuela, the rest of the population lives in extreme poverty and in a generalized institutional and political crisis. This also extends to education and personal security, a dramatic scenario that keeps Venezuelans mired in a lethargy that does not allow them to move forward.
During his intervention, Mr. Caleca defined this government as an unnatural alliance that seized power through an absurd totalitarian militarism.
“What can Venezuelan society do to face this?” asked the former president of the CNE to refer to the options that the population has to get rid of Maduro’s dictatorship. He commented that political parties are not enough, since the magnitude of the problem in Venezuela is no longer only the responsibility of the political parties. However, he recognized that these are the civil organizations par excellence created to dispute the power of the State.
Mr. Caleca maintains that the regime reduced the Venezuelan economy, expropriated and ended the entire productive apparatus, destroyed companies, bankrupted PDVSA and other Venezuelan state companies. “What took 60 years to build, they destroyed in 10 years,” he said.
Before entering into the electoral subject, Andrés Caleca spoke about the scandalous number of Venezuelans who have had to leave the country, which according to the statistics registered by the UNHCR, exceeds 7,200,000 people in a country of 30 million inhabitants.This which means a very considerable reduction of the electoral roll.
Mistakes by the Opposition
The economist acknowledged in his speech that the opposition has made many mistakes that have created an atmosphere of confusion and despair among the community. “You cannot call for abstention and then vote,” he stressed.
He also assures that citizens are clear about one thing: leave Nicolás Maduro. “80% of Venezuelans reject Maduro and his administration,” he assured, while pointing out that this is a big enough proportion to get rid of this dictatorship.
Among other aspects, he details that in the coming months we will all be heading to a presidential election and that 80% is enough to defeat the PSUV, the official government organization that in the last 10 years has not been able to get more than 3,500,000 votes in all the latest recent elections.
“If we mobilize that 80% and turn this into a political force, we will achieve that change of government,” he stressed.
Votes as a Weapon
Regarding the importance of the vote, Caleca insists that it is the only weapon that Venezuelans have to get out of this dictatorship. He assures that when the people recognize their power and the power of unity, there is no power on the other side that counts.
“Let’s take advantage of this window that we will have in 2024 to beat up Nicolás Maduro,” he said. He added that it is necessary to fight and defend electoral rights from the very beginning to avoid cheating.
The REP Is Closed
Andres Caleca: 80% of Venezuelans reject Nicolás Maduro
“Our electoral (voters) registry comprises about 21 million voters and of those 21 million, at the very least 4 million are outside the country and two million have migrated within Venezuela,” he stated. Caleca mentioned that at least 3 million new voters have not been able to register in the Permanent Electoral Registry (REP), since only the offices in the regional capitals are open, so residents of distant municipalities do not have access to register.
Finally, he emphasizes that it is necessary for the general population, political parties and civil organizations to see the importance of the REP, which is why it is necessary to strengthen the defense of electoral (voting) rights and not lose heart in promoting the vote throughout the national territory.
“We have two years, and it is possible to defeat Nicolás Maduro’s regime.”
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