Oppositional fracture in the National Assembly: what is the directive that will legislate in Venezuela?

[Jultxxxyes]

The board chaired by the opposition Luis Parra could accelerate the election of a new Electoral Council to convene legislative elections, which will force the group of Juan Guaidó to define whether to participate or not.

 

The Venezuelan opposition deputy, Juan Guaidó could completely lose control of the facilities of the National Assembly (Parliament), one of the last redoubts of institutional power he had, according to Venezuelan lawyer and legal advisor, Luz María Escarrá.

Guaidó, who was displaced from the Presidency of the National Assembly (AN) by a new Board of Directors chaired by the opposition Luis Parra, promoted the creation of a parallel legislative power and, two days later, the seat of Parliament entered by force to swear in the Chamber of sessions. However, Escarrá considers it unlikely that the feat can be repeated constantly.

"We have a set of opposition deputies, led by Guaidó, winning the directive of the AN without any legal support. And we have another set of opposition deputies led by Parra who, according to what is established in our legal system, carried out the proper procedure to assume the post-voting address and in the absence of a valid Board of Directors, "explains the lawyer.

Escarrá clarifies that, according to judgment 260 issued by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ), in 2016 the board of directors of the AN, presided at that time by the opposition deputy Henry Ramos Allup, went into contempt, so this January 5 there was no valid directive that assumed the change of powers.

"The contempt is of the Board of Directors, not of the deputies and deputies, this means that the deputies who went to the hemicycle on day 5 at 11:00 in the morning were faced with the absence of a valid Board of Directors and, in agreement to what was established in the legal norm, it was up to him to assume as a speaker of the session the oldest deputy and as secretary 'ad interim' to the youngest, and that was exactly how he proceeded, "adds Escarrá.

 

This new directive is rejected by some countries in the region, which maintain their support for Guaidó. Similarly, the self-proclaimed "interim president" was also recognized by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Can you legislate the AN led by Luis Parra?
According to Parra, during his election as the new president of the AN, 140 deputies were in the Chamber of Sessions for the vote, and another 10 entered at the end of it, giving a total of 150 present. His candidacy was supported by 81 present. Can you legislate like this?

"The fact that there have been 81 votes does not mean that this will be the quorum from now on: one thing is the voters and another is present. In fact, in the session on January 7, some deputies who did not vote were also present for Parra, that is, that the quorum can be fulfilled. In addition, other deputies interested in being, in listening, in sabotaging, in whatever they want will surely attend, but their only presence in the chamber makes a quorum, "explains the lawyer to RT and constitutionalist expert Olga Álvarez.

Álvarez also recalls that at this time the AN has 3 seats less, since the election of 3 deputies is still under trial, that is, 'sub júdice', having been considered fraudulent. This implies that the total number of members of Parliament is not 167 but 164, which reduces to 82 the half required to pass some regulations.

"To pass organic laws, resignation of rectors, and other aggravated decisions, a special qualification is required, that is, a qualified majority. But the rest of the decisions are taken by an absolute majority of those present, that is, if there are 80 present, because with 41 votes the decision is valid. You can legislate, "adds Alvarez.

 

The qualified majority applies only to those decisions that require a greater consensus due to their importance and may refer to three fifths of the Assembly (100 deputies) or two thirds (111 deputies) of the total.

At the moment, the decision that generates more expectation in Venezuela is whether the new directive, under the leadership of Parra, could accelerate the election of a new National Electoral Council that calls for legislative elections this year, which will force the Guaidó block to define whether to participate or not

And the contempt?
But in order for that decision to be voted on, the AN must leave the contempt incurred by swearing in three elected deputies, on whom weighed a complaint for electoral fraud.

Despite this irregularity, in 2019, the AN approved 81 agreements, sanctioned two laws and an Approval Law of International Convention (TIAR), which were then rejected one by one by the TSJ, putting Parliament's functions in check and increasing the confrontations between the powers.

In this regard, Álvarez says, there are two options to get out of contempt: "or the 3 citizens who possessed a precautionary measure that suspended their adjudication, or corresponds to the TSJ, who is the one who knows the cause, lift the case measure".

The lifting of this precautionary measure can occur by the TSJ without anyone requesting it, or it may arise before a "request from a party", which implies a formal request from the AN to the Constitutional Chamber of the Court.

"For the latter, the AN can argue, for example, that the situation of hostility has ceased, that it is necessary to eliminate contempt to achieve the stability of the country, that 2020 is an election year, or any livelihood they consider viable," he adds. the constitutional lawyer.

 

Where to account?

According to the Venezuelan Constitution, every January 10, the President must present his annual report to the AN in plenary session. However, the previous year, the president Nicolás Maduro did so before the National Constituent Assembly (ANC), as Parliament was in contempt. Will the same happen this Friday?

For Escarrá, the Venezuelan president could do so in both the AN and the ANC. "You can do it, and that is what I would recommend, in the Assembly, because the current board of directors is already entitled. In fact, this new Board of Directors has already assumed the mandate of the Judiciary (TSJ), by not allowing the entry of citizens that self-denounce their status as deputies "or lost parliamentary immunity, he concludes.