CARACAS, (Reuters) – Venezuelan legislators yesterday stripped control of a major chunk of Caracas from the capital’s opposition mayor, the latest move increasing the power of socialist Presi-dent Hugo Chavez in the OPEC nation.
Lawmakers in the national assembly approved the creation of a new Caracas district to be governed by an official chosen by Chavez, weakening opposition Mayor Antonio Ledezma who defeated a pro-government candidate in November elections.
“They are putting me at the margin of my authority and powers with the beating they are giving to the constitution, but we will get back on our feet,” Ledezma told reporters before the vote. He will now govern mainly opposition-run municipalities on the outskirts of the city.
Chavez, a strident critic of the United States, has won repeated elections during his decade in power on a platform of redistributing oil wealth to the poor and has become the most visible leader of Latin America’s leftist movements.
Since winning a February referendum that allows him to run for reelection as often as he likes, the former tank soldier has begun an aggressive campaign against opponents, arresting one former ally and stripping control of ports and roads from opposition governors and mayors who won key posts last year.
Several top opposition politicians are under investigation on corruption charges and one former presidential candidate is in hiding to avoid arrest.
