On Tuesday Hugo Chávez celebrated the eleventh anniversary of his presidency of Venezuela. In his speech, which lasted over two hours, Chávez also swore in the new vice president, Elias Jaua, replacing Colonel Ramón Carrizales, who resigned on 25th January.
At the ceremony in Caracas Chávez stated that he hoped to remain in power for a further 11 years, “I like this number 11…..I am 55 years old, 11 years as president. The next 11 years promise to take care of me a little more and within 11 years I will be 66 years old, and if you want it, by Gods will, 22 years as president.” However, he also commented that he would not seek a further 11 years as he would then be 77 years old and 33 years in power woud be too much.
Chávez will finish his second term in office in 2012. An amendment to the constitution in February 2009 now enables him to run for a further term. Opponents have claimed that Chávez is seeking to perpetuate himself in office, but he states that his motivations are to enable the Bolivarian revolution, that he initiated in 1999, to reach maturity, “Our government is still a child, the revolution is still a girl.”
During his speech, which was broadcast on national radio and television, Chávez spoke about his next challenge, the legislative elections in September: “We will win the National Assembly with overwhelming majority. We will defeat the rebels and the fascists in the streets.”
The ceremony was held after a week of friction with former allies, political opponents and massive student protests across the country. Student leaders in Venezuela are demanding an investigation into last week’s clashes between students and police that resulted in the death of a pro-Chávez student.
On Monday a group of former allies of Chávez called for his resignation. Among the group were ministers of his first government in 1999 and soldiers who had accompanied him in the failed coup attempt against President Carlos Andrés Pérez in 1992.
At a press conference on Sunday Luis Alfonso Dávila, former Congress Speaker, former Minister of the Interior and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, read a statement from the group voicing their demands. Dávila said: “Everything you said before you took office has turned you into an illegitimate president. People suffer from personal insecurity, undermined freedoms, legal and social insecurity; poverty is deepening; public utilities such as water, electricity and garbage collection are a mess. Lack of productivity has led to food shortages, the country’s infrastructure has deteriorated due to the lack of maintenance; the Venezuelan economy is experiencing one of its more serious crises despite oil prices…..corruption has reached obscene levels.”
This Thursday will mark the 18 year anniversary of the 1992 coup attempt that catapulted Chávez to the top of the Venezuelan political scene. While the government will hold a “Day of National Dignity”, the opposition will use the anniversary to claim the “undemocratic” character of the president.