President Chegui said on Tuesday that Portugal’s recognition on paper of “candidate A, B or C could become ridiculous if nothing changes in Venezuela.”
André Ventura responded to the draft resolution of the Liberal Initiative (IL), which recommends that the Portuguese government recognize Edmundo González as the winner of the presidential elections in Venezuela and make efforts for widespread recognition.
Speaking to journalists during a visit to the Livramento market in Setubal, President Chegui, in turn, called for Portugal to support those inside and outside Venezuela who are fighting for the “democratic overthrow of Nicolás Maduro.”
“Recognizing a candidate as the winner? We have had bad experiences in the past. Issuing a piece of paper that the Portuguese state recognizes A, B or C could become ridiculous if nothing changes in Caracas,” he argued.
André Ventura said Portugal must push for the results of the elections in Venezuela and, together with the international community and the European Union, tell Nicolás Maduro that dictatorship is unacceptable.
“Nicolas Maduro must feel that the flow of European money will stop if he does not accept the democratic results, that the European Union will not cooperate for a second if he does not accept the democratic results and if this threatens neighboring countries, our European countries with their economic and political forces, together with the United States, must say that we are ready to do everything to remove him from power,” he stressed.
“I would like Europe to tell Nicolas Maduro that he cannot cross the line, and if he does, he will be removed from power by hook or by crook,” he said.
In late July, Venezuela held presidential elections, after which the National Electoral Council (CNE) awarded victory to Maduro with just over 51% of the vote, while the opposition claims that González won almost 70% of the vote.
Both dissidents and much of the international community are calling for a transparent vote count.
On Saturday, Portugal, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland called on the Venezuelan authorities to quickly disclose all election protocols to guarantee full transparency and integrity of the electoral process, giving credibility to the protocols published by the opposition.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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