Venezuela Supreme Court Voids All National Assembly Actions
Venezuela's Supreme Court has decided that all actions made by the opposition MUD coalition, which currently holds a majority in the country's National Assembly, will be void until three banned lawmakers are removed from office.
After the MUD took two-thirds of the National Assembly seats in the recent legislative election, President Nicolás Maduro accused the opposition party of vote-buying and barred four newly elected lawmakers from taking their seats. Three of the barred members -- Nirma Guarulla, Julio Ygarza and Romel Guzamana -- belong to the MUD and represent the province of Amazonas. Despite the ban, the three were sworn in last week.
As previously reported, Henry Ramos Allup, an MUD deputy and the new president of the National Assembly, announced on Jan. 5 that his party would soon take measures to force the Socialist President Maduro out of office. Speaking at the National Assembly swearing-in ceremony, Ramos Allup said Venezuelans could expect a change in their government within six months.
"Here and now, things will change," he said.
Ramos Allup went so far as to order the removal of portraits of former President Hugo Chávez from the National Assembly.
But it was the swearing-in of the three barred legislators, that led to the Supreme Court's action. In an official statement, the court said that any decisions made by the National Assembly while these lawmakers were in office would be null. If these three legislators are removed, the opposition would lose its supermajority in the legislature.
Ramos Allup took to Twitter to denounce the Supreme Court's move, saying the government is flouting the will of the people.
As the BBC reports, former National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello said the just and democratic thing for the National Assembly to do now would be to revoke the swearing-in of these lawmakers.
"If the National Assembly is in contempt, nobody is going to recognize it," he said.
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