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Chavez remains unassailable

While Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez's victory in the presidential election was expected, the size and nature of the mandate he received on December 3 indicate that he might be unassailable for a long time to come. Diehard critics of the re-elected President were obviously dreaming if they thought that voters in a free poll would stage a silent revolution and oust him from power. The expectations of more sober opponents who thought that the contest would be close were not fulfilled either. Although the final figures are still awaited, Mr. Chavez seems to be well on the way to securing a 20-plus percentage point margin over his rival Manuel Rosales. The outcome is all the more significant because all elements of the Venezuelan opposition ranging from former guerrillas to right-wing radicals had for once rallied behind a single candidate. In a marked departure from the practice followed by anti-Chavista candidates in the 1998 and 2000 presidential elections, Mr. Rosales had tried to storm the bastions of the ruling Fifth Republican Movement by campaigning in the barrios from where it draws strong support. In promising to undertake a series of populist measures if elected, the challenger had tried to show that he was as much pro-people as Mr. Chavez. A large majority of Venezuela's 16 million voters was clearly not taken in by the campaign promises of a candidate who was backed by the privileged sections of the population.

The result appears to indicate that the Bolivarian Revolution cannot be easily reversed. Mr. Chavez can justly claim that under his dispensation the country's oil wealth has been used for the benefit of the less privileged sections of Venezuelan people. In the first nine months of 2006, a total of $8.3 billion in oil revenues was used to finance special programmes under which food, health care and adult literacy services are provided free or at a very low cost to the people of the barrios. In displaying the gumption to take on foreign oil companies, Mr. Chavez would also appear to have convinced Venezuelans that he will stand up for their interests. His readiness to slug it out with the United States administration has also gone down well with a Latino people who are no longer prepared to be exploited by business interests headquartered in the northern hemisphere. No doubt all is not well with the country, what with the high rates of crime, unemployment, and inflation. If Mr. Chavez could storm back to power despite these shortcomings, it clearly demonstrates the appeal of his pro-poor policies and his style of politics and diplomacy.

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