Lula criticizes Maduro, but minimizes Corina Machado’s disqualification

President Luiz Inácio da Lula da Silva (PT) gave contradictory statements about the elections in Venezuela this Thursday (28). He even criticized Nicolás Maduro and said it was “serious” that candidate Corina Yoris, an opponent of the Venezuelan dictator, was unable to register for the presidential elections in the country. But, at the same event, he again minimized the disqualification of another candidate for the position of the Venezuelan opposition, María Corina Machado. The statements were made at Palácio do Planalto, in Brasília, during a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron.

According to the PT member, the fact that María Corina Machado was prevented from running by the Venezuelan courts “was not an aggravating factor”. On the other hand, Lula condemned the fact that the Venezuelan regime prevented her from appointing a replacement “without legal or political reasons”.

“The fact that a candidate could not contest the election was not an aggravating factor. Here, in Brazil, I was banned from contesting, when I was the leader in all the electoral polls. I nominated Haddad. We lost. But it’s part of it,” said Lula.

The PT member had already caused controversy a few weeks ago when he said that “instead of crying”, María Corina Machado should nominate someone else to run in her place. The Vente Venezuela candidate was disqualified from contesting presidential elections for 15 years by the Venezuelan Supreme Court. She tried to appeal the decision, but to no avail.

Despite these statements, the PT member stated this Thursday (28) that he considers it “serious” that the other opposition candidate, Corina Yoris, was unable to register for the Venezuelan elections.

“It is serious that the candidate could not have been registered. She was not banned by the courts. It seems to me that she went to the place, tried to use the local computer and was unable to enter. So it is something that caused harm to a candidate. No There is a legal or political explanation for prohibiting an opponent from being a candidate”, said Lula.

Corina Yoris tried to be the replacement for María Corina Machado, the main name of the Venezuelan opposition, in the presidential elections, but claims to have been blocked from registering in the automated registration system at the National Electoral Council (CNE) – which is controlled by allies of the dictator Maduro .

Macron says the electoral process in Venezuela cannot be considered democratic

The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, also condemned the situation in the country and stated that the electoral process in Venezuela “cannot be considered democratic”. “The framework in which these elections are taking place cannot be considered democratic. The situation is serious and has worsened with the last decision,” said Macron.

“Everything must be done to convince President Maduro and the system [eleitoral venezuelano] so that they can reinstate all other candidates and have more transparent elections, with regional and international observers. I agree with everything Lula said, we firmly condemn them for removing a very good candidate from this process”, said the Frenchman.

Macron also stated that he was in contact with Brazil, Chile and Argentina about the electoral situation in Venezuela.

Dictator Nicolás Maduro has been pressured by the international community to hold democratic elections in the country. Last year, the Maduro regime, opposition parties and several countries concluded the Barbados Agreement, with the intention of enabling transparent and democratic elections in Venezuela.

Under the terms of the treaty, the United States agreed to lift the embargoes imposed on Caracas as long as the Venezuelan autocrat fulfilled his part of the agreement: democratic elections monitored by the international community. The autocrat, however, has not fulfilled his part of the agreement and has already carried out several electoral maneuvers to manipulate the electoral process in the country.

Other controversial statements by Lula about Venezuela

While Maduro abuses electoral maneuvers to stay in power, Lula called for the “presumption of innocence” for the election called by the Venezuelan dictator. The statement was given by the PT member at the beginning of this month. He stated that he cannot guarantee in advance that the elections will be “honest” and “democratic” – although he hopes for that –, but that he received Maduro’s guarantee that he will open the electoral process for the world’s observation.

In May 2023, the Brazilian received Nicolás Maduro in Brasília for the South American Summit. Received with the honors of head of state, Maduro was the only South American president who arrived in the country the day before the event. After bilateral meetings, the PT member even said, in a press conference, that Maduro was “the victim of a narrative of anti-democracy and authoritarianism”. The statement earned the Brazilian a lot of criticism, among opponents and supporters.