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Chávez slated to win.
On 25 May the Venezuelan Supreme Court suspended nationwide
elections scheduled for 28 May. The new date for the so-called mega-elections has not been
set definitively but according to the interim National Legislative
Commission (Congresillo), national elections will be held in the
first week of July. The
postponement was due to technical problems in the electronic voting
system, which would have compromised the fairness and transparency of the
elections according to the Court.
Even
though opposition presidential candidate Francisco Arias Cardenas has
gained some ground in the past month, the delay is not anticipated to
substantially improve his chances of ousting incumbent Hugo Chávez Frías.
The May polls conducted by the key independent polling firms, still
give Chávez 48-54% of the vote to Cardenas' 35-37%.
Independent candidate Claudio Fermín is well behind the leading
contenders at 2-4%.
Economic reforms moving ahead.
The concern about the economy under the Chávez administration has been
the direct reflection of the administration's excessive focus on its
political reform agenda, which has distracted officials from the need to
elaborate a cohesive economic policy agenda.
As a result, domestic and international investors have stayed clear
of making new commitments. Nevertheless,
the recent adoption of a new telecommunications law by the Congresillo,
in the past month shows that the government is attempting to move ahead.
This new telecommunications law, when issued will enable the national
telecommunications regulatory authority, CONATEL (Comisión Nacional de
Telecomunicaciones) to begin approving concessions on basic telephone
services before the official expiration of current monopoly holder
CANTV’s monopoly. The terms
of the original sales contract for the provision of basic telephone
services signed between the government and the consortium VenWorld
Telecom, which owns 40% of CANTV, is set to expire on 27 November of this
year. However, the government
hopes to introduce competition sooner so that new companies can begin
operating in Venezuela by year-end. The
opening of the telecommunications sector promises to deliver significant
benefits for the government. The
government currently collects 5 to 10% of annual revenues from
telecommunication firms in taxes and another 0.5% in concession payments.
Additional revenues are collected on income and sales.
Furthermore, the government is clearly hoping that reforms in the
telecommunications sector's legal framework will induce greater influx of
needed foreign capital.
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