05/10/2024
He Former president Iván Duque premiered his new podcast on political opinion called “Three Answers”. In his debut, had as a guest the Venezuelan political leader, María Corina Machadowho was disqualified from participating as a presidential candidate in the upcoming elections on July 28.
During the interview, which lasted more than thirty minutes, Duque and Machado addressed issues related to the political situation in Venezuela, opposition security in the midst of the electoral climate and whether the current president, Nicolás Maduro, who is seeking re-election, will respect the elections.
One of the key points of the conversation was the “legitimacy” of the elections in Venezuela and the role of democratic resistance in that country.
Read here: Alert in Venezuela’s opposition after political disqualification of five other members
Faced with this, Machado pointed out the obstacles faced by the opposition, including the disqualification of political leaders, like herself: “(Maduro) He thought he was going to get me out and us out of this fight for clean elections. and free in Venezuela and he has not achieved it and we have overcome each of the obstacles that have been put in front of us. Today we have a candidate who is an honest man, he is not well known in Venezuela, but we have 90 days for the country to understand that he is a figure that has my trust and that has the support of democratic Venezuela,” says the opposition leader, referring to the candidate Edmundo González, the replacement of Maria Corina to give “the fight” to Maduro at the polls.
Duke called Maduro’s government as a “regime of tyranny” and points out that “Maduro’s intention is to stay in power at any price.”
Then, the former president raised the possibility of Maduro returning to power to politics, however, Machado highlighted the great support that the opposition has had. According to Venezuelan politics“we know that the regime is truly weak and fragile in terms of its popular support.” and it has also been falling with each passing day (…) in the activities it organizes Maduro, the few times he dares to leave Miraflores, does not have any type of emotion; on the contrary, I think he is rather afraid of exposing himself.”.
In terms of support from international organizations in observing the elections and defending democracy, Machado highlighted: “I do hope that international electoral observation organizations are aware of what it would mean for Venezuela if the regime perpetrated a fraud that was not dismantled.”
For his part, Duque took the opportunity to criticize the position of the Organization of American States (OAS) regarding the situation in Venezuela. He described a “different” OAS and stated that “The democratic resistance is practically preparing to play David against Goliath.”
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During the conversation the topic of the safety of opposition leaders, including Machado, and how they face constant threats and personal risks due to their fight against the regime.
Furthermore, Machado warned that “if Maduro, by force, intends to stay in power against the enormous will of the Venezuelans, “It would be a devastating scenario.” and asked to respect the Constitution.
Finally, the Venezuelan opponent was positive about the elections and noted: “I am confident that we are going to achieve it.”
