By Carlos Camacho.
The National Assembly President, Juan Guaido managed to enter the Parliament building this Sunday afternoon, after a physical confrontation with National Guard forces that prevented him, and the rest of the opposition deputies, from accessing the building and taking part in a vote to elect a new directive for the Parliament.
During the delay, Luis Parra, a lawmaker that has been accused of selling out to the Nicolas Maduro regime, proclaimed himself as the new President of the National Assembly, a move that seemed to have been timed with the delay to allow Guaido into the building. There was no quorum seated during Parra’s pronunciation and the “vote” (a show of hands) was not verified.
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Guaido and a group of deputies had to wait outside the National Assembly for almost four hours while being harassed by state television reporters. He arrived together with several deputies, including Juan Pablo Guanipa. They asked to police at the blockade to allow them to enter into the National Assembly to participate in the set-up session scheduled for January 5th, 11 a.m. However, he couldn´t enter the place.
The National Guard brandished a list of deputies, all of them from the opposition, which it says have their “immunity lifted”.
The diplomatic corps accredited in Caracas are inside the building together with some 15 opposition deputies, the only group from the 112 opposition deputies that has so far been allowed inside.
Citizen reporter Eduardo Zehr told “El Pitazo” that other parliamentarians are waiting around the Assembly building.
Opposition deputies Elsa Solorzano and Rafael Veloz exited the National Assembly building to try and get the National Guard to allow more opposition parliamentarians.
