Over the last week President Chavez has been hard on the campaign trail crisscrossing Venezuela to hold important meetings, especially in key Carabobo and Zulia States in danger of falling to the opposition. Speaking at a United Socialist Party of Venezuelan (PSUV) rally in Lagunillas (Zulia), the President has continued his attacks on opposition leader and candidate to the Mayor's Office of Maracaibo, Manuel Rosales. Last night, Chavez issued a warning that if Rosales did not recognize election results on November 23 as threatened, he would go to jail immediately. Calling Rosales "king of the corrupt," Chavez has called on supporters in Zulia to be on the alert for any destabilization attempts on the part of the opposition and has warned opposition candidate to Zulia State Governorship, Pablo Perez to behave himself or else he will end up in prison playing dominos with Rosales. Visiting Sucre State, President Chavez has highlighted the conduct of current State Governor, Ramon Martinez as "a living expression of the weaknesses of the revolutionary process." Addressing local PSUV candidates and supporters, Chavez retorts that Ramon Martinez won elections in 2004 on the President's back only to betray the people and end up supporting Accion Democratica (AD) candidate, Eduardo Morales Gil to be his successor. The PSUV candidate is Enrique Maestre and Chavez is convinced that Sucre State will return to the government, arguing that least 1 82,000 persons, that is to say 32% of people on the electoral register, are PSUV militants. Martinez is currently president of the Podemos Party, which has separated itself from the government, joining the opposition.
The National Elections Council (CNE) has opened an administrative investigation into accusations that State VTV channel is biased towards government candidates in the upcoming elections. CNE president, Tibisay Lucena says the probe centers around whether the channel has violated article 16 of regulations on publicity and propaganda.
The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) communication and propaganda committee has rejected the investigation, expressing " amazement" at the probe. Committee leader, Vanessa Davies states that VTV is the only channel that informs the Venezuelan people about the activities of PSUV party president and President of the Republic, Hugo Chavez. The party insists that the investigation is an effort to curtail the right to inform the population.
Communication & Information (Minci) Minister, Andreas Izarra complains that there is an imbalance in the news that reaches the general public. Izarra criticizes the handling of government news by Venezuela's private media and insists that State VTV channel is at the disposition of all political parties. "VTV is making a big effort to show the Real Venezuela, which is being hidden by the private media through meanness and silence." As regards the prices of campaign adverts on VTV, Izarra points out that they are far lower than those of 24-hour opposition Channel Globovision, which has become the main channel for the opposition. However, Izarra continues to ignore petitions from independent left-wing newspapers to hand out and share some campaign advert spots.
Another member of the PSUV media committee and leading media figure for the government, Blanca Eekhout claims that Venezuela is living under a "media dictatorship," pointing out that the written press is 99% privately owned, radio 95% and television more than 90%. Eekhout also states that the private media in Venezuela is closely linked with transnational interests and is part of "media and political hegemony of the North American Empire." The government media leader defends coverage of PSUV campaign events by VTV, stating that it is the only TV media source that is doing so.
Although neither Vanessa Davies nor Blanca Eekhout mentioned that the role of community and alternative media in informing local communities about the election events, Minci Minister Andreas Izarra has opened an FM station in Carabobo belonging to the national circuit of Radio Nacional de Venezuela (RNV). The Minister says the new station is open to all sectors of the community and will help end " media terrorism and encirclement." This will be the first of five regional radio stations set up as an initiative to democratize the media. The coordinator of the new station, Marlyn Dalila Cavaniel declares that the FM station will provide local information and will be channel for listeners and community groups to publicize their experiences of organisation and communal power.
The government has set up what it calls a single register gateway for communal councils. The idea is to set up and coordinate joint action between several government bodies that deal with communal councils, such as the Ministry for Communal Economy, Ministry for Economy & Finance, Ministry of Interior & Justice (MIJ). The gateway itself kicks off today and consists of registration, updating and formalization of all popular power organizations throughout Venezuela. The initiative is expected to unite criteria in working with communities and their communal banks to speed up red tape that has already held up many projects and legal processes.
Patrick J. O'Donoghue
vheadline@gmail.com
Venezuela is facing the most difficult period of its history with honest reporters crippled by sectarianism on top of rampant corruption within the administration and beyond, aided and abetted by criminal forces in the US and Spanish governments which cannot accept the sovereignty of the Venezuelan people to decide over their own future.
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