CARACAS: Government and opposition forces in Venezuela’s brought to a close the official presidential campaign season on Thursday through demonstrations, which saw thousands of people take to the streets of the capital.
The events, three days before Sunday’s highly expected election captured the huge gaps between the top contenders especially their resources.
On one of the Main Streets in Caracas, President Nicolas Maduro who is running for a third term appeared on stage surrounded by his supporters and gave a speech with) musical interludes and dances. During the rally which was partly bussed in from other parts of Caracas through state owned buses he called his opponent’s violent agitators but referred to himself as peaceful.
“Which one among these ten candidates gives peace and stability?” asked Maduro from his podium. But it was him speaking about possible bloodletting after elections just some days ago.
On another lane, former diplomat Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia who represents Unitary Platform coalition and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado had very few supporters. Gonzalez and Machado moved around on top of a mobile platform that was mounted on a trailer until they reached this middle-class district of Caracas.
Lack of funds as well as government repression against Machado herself or anyone at all who might want to help her out either through volunteering or entering into any contract with her campaign has prevented them from putting up proper stages such that even today their sound system was not powerful enough so that every supporter could hear anything being said.
State television covered live every part of Maduro’s rally and ignored what took place during opposition’s event.
This Sunday’s election poses the toughest electoral challenge for Venezuela’s ruling United Socialist Party in decades.
Maduro is no popular than before with many voters blaming him for an elongated crisis that has attacked them for more than 11 years while at the same time over years boycotting elections amongst party divisions main opposition parties have united behind one candidate, Gonzalez.
