MOSCOW, April 20 (RIA Novosti) - Nicolas Maduro was sworn in on Friday as Venezuela’s president following a disputed election last Sunday.
“I am calling to stop splitting the country into two camps, I am calling on everyone, including opposition politicians, to start talks on different scenarios,” Maduro said addressing the nation.
Maduro said he would respect the rights of those Venezuelans who voted against him (nearly a half) and pledged those guilty of several deaths during protests that followed the disputed presidential polls would be punished.
The president said he supported the National Electoral Council’s decision to audit Sunday’s vote.
Maduro, 50, the late Hugo Chavez’s protégé, won by a tiny margin, gaining over 50 percent of the vote, while his election rival Henrique Capriles, 40, received some 49 percent.
Capriles refused to accept the results, saying the polls were plagued by numerous voting irregularities, and called for his supporters to rally in peaceful protest.
Chavez, who had ruled Venezuela for 14 years, died on March 5 at the age of 58 after a two-year-long fight with cancer. He named Maduro as his successor before undergoing the latest surgery in December 2012.
