National Electoral Council (CNE) directors argue technical issues

Caracas Daily Journal (Jeremy Morgan): The board at National Electoral Council (CNE) is arguing about technical issues concerning the registration of new voters and whose responsibility it is to write the question -– or questions -– to be submitted to the voters.

The squabbling was sparked off by CNE Director Vicente Diaz, who urged the council to keep the register open to new voters. The initial reaction of his colleagues towards this was cool, and it was argued that there wasn't enough time between now and the proposed date of February 15 for a referendum on President Hugo Chavez' plan to modify the Constitution by removing a ban on successive re-election. However, CNE director German Yepez has conceded that the "final audit" could indeed be carried out to include people eligible to vote up to and including December 11 last year.

Chavez has complicated issues by broadening his proposal. Initially, he wanted a referendum solely on the presidential mandate, but has since said it should apply to all elected posts. This has prompted suspicions that he's mainly out to bolster support for himself rather than the stated aim of extending democratic practice throughout the system.

Nelson Merentes, a former finance minister who runs his own consultancy company, said a recent poll suggested that including the mandates of state governors and municipal mayors could boost support for the proposed constitutional amendment.

• Diaz had also spoken up about the question that should be put to the voters. Yepez replied that this wasn't the CNE's business, and would be decided by the National Assembly (AN).

The wording of the question is a sensitive issue. Were the question to refer specifically to the president, it's argued that people's views of Chavez might influence how they voted. But, it's said, if the question referred only to a mandate, their feelings about Chavez might have less impact.