Playing With Fire

Everyone knows that playing with fire is both stupid and dangerous.

But that appears to be what's happening in Venezuela as the supporters of the former presdient - Hugo Chavez - play fast and loose with the country's written constitution.

Now the 1999 constitution of Venezuela requires that the speaker of the National Assembly - becomes interim president in the event that the president-elect dies - or for some reason is unable to be sworn in and assume office.

Now Hugo Chavez won last year's october 2012 election - but because he was terminally ill with cancer the president elect never took up his office and was never sworn in - as required by the constitution.

So the constitution requires that new elections are held with 30 days and that a reasonably impartial figure - in the shape of the Speaker (or Chairperson) of the national parliament - holds the ring until a new president is elected.

Yet that is not what is happening - because Hugo Chavez's deputy and anointed successor (Nicolas Maduro) has already been sworn in an emergency meeting of the parliament - held not  in the National Assembly but in the building where the former president's body was on public display.

Now I was never a great fan of Hugo Chavez and I'm not his greatest critic either - but the behaviour of his supporters seems quite wrong and indefensible.

The former president's political supporters knew how ill he was - yet were happy to use him as theor popular front man in the elections - they also knew he was too ill to be sworn in and president and to take up his presidential duties.

Now they know what the constitution says - yet are happy to tear the constitution up in another cynical ploy designed to give their man an unfair advantage - and help him win the forthcoming election.

Assuming an election takes place of course - because choosing selectively which parts of the constitution to observe can become habit forming - even for folks who like to call themselves democratic socialists.

I notice that Nicolas Maduro has taken to calling his Presidential opponent - Henrique Capriles - a 'fascist' which is a very specific term with a very deliberate meaning and not one to be bandied about lightly - even in the heat of the moment.   

The interesting thing is that the new 'interim' president - Nicolas Maduro - is a former  union official and was a bus driver once upon a time - so maybe his instincts are not those of the normal political elite, although time will clearly tell.

For now there are enough worrying signs to suggest that the 'democratic' socialists are simply making up the rules to suit themselves as they go along - though the word for that kind of behaviour is not democracy - but tyranny.