Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro’s government said Thursday that it has banned opposition leader Juan Guaido from public office for 15 years.
The ban comes after Guaido challenged Maduro last week, saying his government was too dysfunctional to arrest him.
Elvis Amoroso, the country’s comptroller and a close ally of Maduro, made the announcement on state television, citing alleged irregularities with Guaido’s finances.
“We’re going to continue in the streets,” Guaido declared in response. Both opposition protesters and government forces plan on more demonstrations this week in their attempts to gain legitimacy.
The United States and dozens of other countries recognize Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela, while China, Iran, and Russia back Maduro. Widespread protests broke out in the country when Maduro inaugurated his second term in January after what observers called a fraudulent election. Two million people have fled Venezuela during Maduro’s rule, with food shortages and power outages becoming increasingly frequent.
On Wednesday, President Trump hosted Guaido’s wife, Fabiana Rosales and the wife of Guaido’s chief of staff, Roberto Marrero, in the Oval Office. Romy Moreno Molina described the 2 a.m. raid on March 21 in which Maduro forces kidnapped her husband from their home.
[Opinion: Venezuela is becoming Trump’s version of Obama’s Syria]
