Nitwit and "neighbors" rapid response battalion

www.vheadline.com Posted: Sunday, February 09, 2003 - 6:12:55 AM By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

Sucre Municipal Engineering Department official Maria Francia Rojas must be a bit of a nitwit for not checking out her facts before arriving at the building where an opposition quango called “Sumate” has been storing signatures against the government. Her story that she thought an illegal casino and bingo hall was in operation because of the number of posh cars coming and going and merited a raid sounds like a load of cobblers.

The opposition has highlighted the fact that Rojas just happens to be Sucre Mayor Jose Vicente Rangel Avalos’ sister-in-law and director of the municipal engineering inspector’s office. Rangel Avalos is the son of Executive Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel.

• Just add all of that up to see the political mileage the opposition was handed on a plate.

Then there is the opposition reaction. "Neighbors prevented Rojas and a group of municipal police from taking away the signatures.”

From similar incidents, it is now clear that opposition media spin of “neighbors” is a nicer way of saying “shock troops” ... an answer to the Bolivarian Circles (the latter are never called “neighbors”).

It’s no surprise to see America Martin and Pablo Medina “defending the signatures with their lives” but sad to see constitutional lawyer, Gerardo Blyde joining in the circus.

Last weekend’s signature campaign had already been dismissed as "a face-saving effort" after the implosion of a two-month national stoppage.  The “Sumate” group ... which had promised to publish the results last Tuesday, has not complied, and justifiably people are asking why.

The so-called "democratic" opposition is having second thoughts about the 4-million signature campaign because of 'contraband' introduced in the many petitions people were asked to sign.

Teodoro Petkoff points out that the Coordinadora Democratica (CD) had not authorized the proposal for a Constituent Assembly and modifications to 1999 Constitution Articles 57 and 58 regarding freedom of information ... which, some analysts claim, eliminates the right to receive opportune and truthful information, right of reply and correction.

The lunatic elements of the opposition are once again imposing the agenda and political parties remain in the rearguard, afraid to show leadership.

• Saturday’s anti-government march defending print & broadcast media and the signature campaign supporting Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) are examples.

The loonies have succeeded in convincing the opposition masses that they are defending “our media” ... and we all know that the signatures to defend PDVSA are to maintain Fernandez, Paredes, and Quijano and minor mafia figures in their jobs. I wonder who is footing the bill?

Just to browse the headlines on opinion articles in El Universal and El Nacional is depressing, and shows the current state of creative thinking among opposition intelligentsia … it’s more like the herd mentality.

The same can be said of the government side, except that there are fewer defenders among the intelligentsia and fewer media outlets. Is there any freshness coming from the pens of Barreto, Herrera and other hacks? Not really.

Quinto Dia is the only print media that has maintained a healthy and critical balance throughout this difficult period.

Maria Francia Rojas must be a nitwit … she doesn’t even know her own municipality. Fortunately for her, and the government, the incident was quickly overshadowed by the opposition march to defend “our” media and “our” PDVSA.

The incident has however told us something about the desperate state of the opposition and its coordinated defense system.