During my lunch break I read in El Universal that Baduel has declared that the Chavez proposal was equivalent to a coup d'etat. He asks for people to get informed and reject the proposal.
It is difficult to overstate this piece of news. Baduel is THE GENERAL that had the biggest role in bringing Chavez back into power in 2002. He was his chief of staff and then Defense Minister. Baduel, perhaps more than any other general in Venezuela, has the right to claim that he speaks for a large segment of the rank and file soldiers. Since it is a confirmed fact that Baduel has a personal respect for military institutions and chain of command, it is inconceivable that he did not tell Chavez about his position before he announced his opposition.
That would go a long way in explaining why Chavez was so hysterical yesterday. No wonder Chavez lost it, threatening the students with repression and Globovision and CNN with hell on earth (in English here). He has been suffering in the flesh the poor turnout at the Avenida Bolivar. He could not but compare it with the big turnout of the student marches. He has been complaining to his underlings about their failure to ignite the passion for the referendum from hell. Et tu, Baduel? Chavez must have known that Baduel was calling for a press conference today.
To be continued...
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