New law weakens anti-Chavez mayor in Venezuela

[Bacchus39]

New law weakens anti-Chavez mayor in Venezuela


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090408/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_venezuela_anti_chavez_mayor;_ylt=AsHYKQTrrdmzt1qdFIDSihm3IxIF

..Tue Apr 7, 10:36 pm ET
CARACAS, Venezuela – Legislators loyal to President Hugo Chavez approved a new law Tuesday that erodes the authority of Caracas' opposition mayor by subordinating him to a government-appointed official.

The law approved by the predominantly pro-Chavez National Assembly gives the official, who will be appointed directly by Chavez, administrative authority over Venezuela's capital.

Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma condemned the move as a new attempt by Chavez to expand his power in the city and weaken his opponents.

"The government wants to control everything, including the state and municipal offices administered by democratically elected opposition leaders," Ledezma told The Associated Press in a telephone interview shortly before the legislation was passed.

Ledezma, who defeated a Chavez-backed candidate in November elections, plans to challenge the new law through a referendum.

Pro-Chavez lawmaker Jose Albornoz denied the approval of the law was politically motivated, saying it would help resolve problems such as inadequate trash collection because it establishes a direct link between the federal government and the city's top administrator.

But Albornoz conceded that it would inevitably lead to "more confrontation in the political arena."

Fewer than a dozen of the assembly's 167 members voted against the law.