Reward offered for arrest of Venezuela candidate
The government of Venezuela has offered a reward of $100,000 (£81,000) for information leading to the arrest of the exiled presidential candidate for the opposition, Edmundo González. The candidate fled the country in September and was given political asylum in Spain after authorities in Venezuela ordered his arrest. González has been accused of conspiracy and forging documents.
He has said that he will return to the country before President Nicolás Maduro is inaugurated next week, having accused the government of rigging the election.
Shortly after the reward had been announced, González said that he was making his way to Argentina to start a tour of Latin America. There he met Argentina president Javier Mieli, a staunch critic of Maduro.
Venezuela has been ordered by the United Nations’ Human Rights Committee to “to refrain from destroying” the voting tallies from the election in July 2024. The tallies give a detailed breakdown of votes from every polling station and have been the subject of dispute over its results ever since.
National Electoral Council (CNE), which according to the BBC is “government-aligned,” declared Maduro, the incumbent, as the winner. It failed to provide the voting tallies to support this however. The opposition, with the help of accredited election witnesses, had collected and published over 80% of the voting tallies which it says prove otherwise, that González was overwhelmingly the winner.
González was relatively unknown when he registered as a candidate for the election in March. He had never run for office before and was not known even among the opposition. The former diplomat would overtake Maduro in opinion polls just months after deciding to run.
González gave a reconciliatory tone during the campaign, unlike Maduro who warned of a “bloodbath” if the opposition candidate should win.
Stay tuned to EyeOnLondon for the latest news and expert opinions.
Image: Government of Venezuela
Follow us on:
Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest videos and updates!
We value your thoughts! Share your feedback and help us make EyeOnLondon even better!
