Venezuela’s Maduro Calls on PSUV Members to Participate in National Conference
President Nicolas Maduro has called on supporters to vote for delegates ahead of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela's (PSUV) national conference in July.
Merida, April 9th 2014 (venezuelanalysis.com) -President Nicolas Maduro has called on supporters to vote for delegates ahead of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela’s (PSUV) national conference in July.
“We have summoned all of Venezuelan society to join, to debate, to study the … documents of the principles, policy and strategic documents of the PSUV,” Maduro stated via his radio programme yesterday.
The national conference will be held from the 26th to 28th of July. Prior to the conference, Maduro will go on a tour of the country to meet with rank and file party members.
Nominations for 540 PSUV delegates will begin on 29 June. The delegates will be elected by party members who are registered in “battle units” (UBCH) – regional branches of the PSUV. Elections will take place on 20 July. Members who are registered with a UBCH but don’t attend meetings won’t be able to participate in the conference. Individuals who ran in the December 2013 municipal elections independently of the PSUV will also be ineligible.
Elections will be overseen by the National Electoral Council (CNE).
Along with the elected delegates, PSUV mayors, governors and legislators are expected to attend the conference, the PSUV’s Libertador mayor Jorge Rodríguez stated yesterday.
“There will be 900 representatives in total,” Rodriguez said.
Prior to the elections, key party documents will be distributed to party members, including the government’s 2013-2019 Homeland Plan.
In late April the PSUV members will be encouraged to participate in pre-conference talks. The conference itself will be organised by a committee of senior party members, including Rodriguez, National Assembly (AN) head Diosdado Cabello, Carabobo governor Francisco Ameliach, First Combatant Cilia Flores and work minister María Cristina Iglesias.
“I call on the whole country – this tremendous conference will refresh [and] renew the political thesis of our revolution,” Maduro stated.
The PSUV’s last national congress was held between November 2009 to April 2010. The party also held a founding conference in 2008.
