The Guyanese government and the people of Guyana can breathe a sigh of relief as a gimmick referendum endorsing Venezuela’s assertion of control over the Essequibo region, approximately two-thirds of Guyana’s territory, seems to have backfired. Despite Nicolás Maduro’s efforts to garner public support for Venezuela’s century-long claim to the disputed Essequibo region, nationwide voting stations were notably quiet on Sunday, with most voters opting to abstain.
The turnout was so lacklustre that analysts widely speculate about the Venezuelan government potentially falsifying and faking the results. The Venezuelan people have sent Maduro a powerful message. However, in Guyana, many of its citizens are aware of the rigging of the referendum and are relieved by the unexpectedly poor turnout. The Venezuelans are entirely fed up with Maduro’s dictatorial regime. They are more interested in their children’s food, housing, health, and education than in claiming another country’s land.
Venezuela is over four times bigger than Guyana (353,841 sq. miles), and the dictator, Maduro, still wants more land. He should concentrate on developing his country and feeding his citizens. The World knows that it was a gimmick referendum to divert the minds of its citizens from the miseries Maduro is inflicting on his people.
Venezuela has asserted its illegal claim over the oil-rich Essequibo region since gaining independence in 1811, alleging unfair border delineation as part of an international conspiracy. The ongoing dispute is under review by the International Court of Justice. Despite this, Maduro actively called on the Venezuelan public, through Chinese platforms like TikTok and national TV, to support the government’s bid to take matters into its own hands.
Venezuela has disregarded the international arbitrators at the Hague. Maduro was shown the unity and determination of thousands of Guyanese last Sunday, showing that Guyana is united and that Maduro should do its best to feed its starving people instead of pocking his noise in our internal affairs. Go and put your house in order, Maduro, and stop interfering in our Essequibo. Essequibo is ours and will remain so forever.
Contrary to Maduro’s quick proclamation of victory, stating a 95% approval rate (what a joke! Who is he conning?) for the government’s questions, reports of empty voting stations and doubts about the validity of the government’s figures have emerged. Has anyone noticed that Dictators always win by over 95%? They do not even know how to manipulate the statistics.
Critics in Venezuela and the outside world know that Maduro’s so-called government has rigged and manipulated the referendum results, with suspicions raised by an image suggesting a tally of votes rather than voters. The lack of detailed or regional results publication further contributes to doubts about the accuracy of the figures.
The whole of Guyana and the world know that Maduro is no democrat. He is the last dictator in South America, and he knows full well that if he rigged the presidential election in 2024, the USA and the world will send him to isolation, and his country will join North Korea as a pariah on the world stage. There is no doubt that he will rig the presidential election because he is so unpopular in Venezuela. The Venezuelans will suffer, and there will be a massive exodus of Venezuelans fleeing Venezuela.
No country on earth, except North Korea, will support Maduro—one dictator to another. The time has come for the people of Venezuela to find a way to get rid of Maduro.
No country is investing even one dollar in Venezuela. Meanwhile, in Guyana, the entire business community worldwide is coming to the country weekly to invest in all the sectors.
Guyana remains cautious despite Maduro’s claimed victory. The Essequibo, rich in natural resources, has become a focal point of Maduro’s rhetoric, especially since the discovery of massive oil reserves in 2015. The referendum is viewed as a gauge of Maduro’s ability to mobilize support for the upcoming presidential elections, where the opposition candidate, María Corina Machado, is predicted to win overwhelmingly and defeat Maduro if the Presidential election is a fair and free contest. However, the US has made it crystal clear that a rigged election is not acceptable, and it will introduce new severe sanctions if Maduro does not allow a fair presidential election.
But Maduro will not allow a fair election, and Venezuela is doomed forever until Maduro and his military clowns are removed from illegal power.
The low turnout in the referendum underscores the public’s prioritization of more pressing matters, such as economic collapse and mass emigration, over the Essequibo dispute. If Maduro fails to rally support for Venezuela’s claim, there are concerns that he may resort to rigging the upcoming presidential elections, further complicating an already challenging political landscape.
The gimmick Referendum has been a massive PR disaster for Maduro, the dictator. The Venezuelans care more about their daily foodstuff, which is not available to them, and they are also witnessing the economic collapse of Venezuela, which has driven more than 7 million people to flee their country to Brazil, Columbia, the Caricom countries, the USA, Canada, and Guyana.
Vedan Choolun, London, UK