Venezuela blocks Guaido from office for 15 years as the opposition scoffs
Source: Reuters
WORLD NEWS MARCH 28, 2019 / 9:36 AM / UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO
Venezuela blocks Guaido from office as the opposition scoffs
Vivian Sequera, Luc Cohen
5 MIN READ
CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelas opposition leader Juan Guaido will be barred from public office for 15 years, the government comptroller said on Thursday, as it seeks to crack down on the U.S.-backed rival to President Nicolas Maduro.
Guaido has been recognized as head of state by most Western countries after invoking the constitution to assume the interim presidency, arguing Maduros 2018 re-election was illegitimate and that he became a usurper when his second term began in January.
Maduro dismisses Guaidos claim to the presidency as a Washington-backed effort to seize power in Venezuela, which is struggling under hyperinflation and crippling blackouts that have left millions of citizens without power this month.
Venezuelas comptroller, Elvis Amoroso, said Guaido had failed to explain how he paid for foreign trips since joining the opposition-run legislature. Last month, Guaido toured South American nations to drum up diplomatic support for pushing Maduro from power.
-snip-
Read more:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics/venezuela-blocks-guaido-from-office-as-the-opposition-scoffs-idUSKCN1R91NY