President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday (30) that he will recognize the result of the election in Venezuela, held last Sunday (28). “Of course I will recognize it, when the victory is consecrated”, said the president, in an interview with Central America TV.
According to him, the Venezuelan authorities need to present the election records to resolve the impasse between the opposition and the government in the country. “It is normal for there to be a fight. How are you going to resolve this fight? Present the records. If the records are in doubt between the opposition and the government, the opposition will file an appeal and wait for the courts to take the case. And then there will be a decision that we have to abide by.”
According to Lula, the process in the neighboring country is considered normal. “I am convinced that it is a normal, peaceful process. What is needed is for people who disagree to have the right to express themselves, to have the right to prove that they disagree. And the government has the right to prove that it is right,” said the president.
Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE) has not yet released the minutes to prove the result announced in the elections, which gave victory to Mature with 51.21% of the votes, against 44% for Edmundo González, according to the CNE.
Part of the opposition, some countries and organizations such as the Organization of American States (OAS) question the fairness of the election and ask for the publication of the minutes that allow the votes to be audited. The government of Nicolas Maduro accuses part of the opposition and countries of inciting an alleged coup d’état in the country against the election result.
Biden
This afternoon, Lula spoke by telephone with the President of the United States, Joe Biden, about the situation in Venezuela after the presidential elections last Sunday (29). The two presidents reiterated the need to publish the electoral records of the election.
In a statement, the White House said that Biden thanked President Lula for his leadership in the region in light of the situation in Venezuela and that the two leaders agreed on the need for immediate disclosure of complete, transparent and detailed electoral data at the polling station level by Venezuelan electoral authorities.
“The two leaders shared the perspective that the outcome of the Venezuelan elections represents a critical moment for democracy in the hemisphere and committed to remain in close coordination on the issue.”
