Venezuelan Opposition Curb Powers of Their Leader Guaido

(Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan opposition parties extended the mandate of Juan Guaido as the person they recognize as the nation’s legitimate leader, but curbed his powers amid criticism of his management of overseas assets and his failure to make headway in his campaign to oust the government. 

The opposition’s assembly voted late Monday to extend its own term for another year and leave Guaido in place as its president. 

Washington and dozens of its allies have recognized Guaido as president of Venezuela since 2019, making him the leader of the movement to oust President Nicolas Maduro. The campaign lost momentum as Guaido’s personal popularity plunged while Maduro retained the loyalty of the security forces. Monday’s decision further undermines his authority. 

After Monday’s vote, Guaido’s role now consists of “defending democracy” and overseeing Venezuela’s overseas assets, including oil refiner Citgo Holding Inc. and gold worth $1 billion stored in the Bank of England. Guaido would have ceased to be “interim president” on Jan. 5 had the opposition assembly done nothing. 

Henceforth Guaido will be accountable to a committee of opposition lawmakers, who he’ll need to keep informed of how he has spent funds under his control. The committee will take over management of foreign policy, which used to be Guaido’s responsibility, and authorize the appointment of ambassadors in opposition allied countries.

“Guaido’s leadership is weakened,” said Luis Vicente Leon, head of local pollster Datanalisis. Even though Guaido retains the figurehead role of interim president, from now on, opposition parties will need to take decisions collectively, Leon said.  

Guaido’s support within the country has fallen to 16% as of October 2021 from 61% in early 2019, according to Datanalisis surveys. The drop was partly caused by accusations of corruption by some of his representatives in Colombia and the U.S.

Several countries have backed away from continuing to recognize him. The European Union stopped referring to Guaido as interim president after the widely criticized National Assembly elections in 2020, choosing instead the term “privileged interlocutor.” 

U.S. officials have said they’ll continue to support him as they don’t recognize Maduro after he won elections in 2018 which they consider to be fraudulent. 

The fractured opposition decided to compete in regional elections in November 2021 after boycotting previous votes. Although it performed better than in previous elections, the government’s Socialist Party won the majority of seats, extending Maduro’s grip over key local authorities. International observers, however, raised concerns about the fairness of the vote.

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