spartan
28th August 2008, 04:12
Ken Livingstone, the former mayor of London, has found a new role as an adviser to the Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez and his political allies. During a surprise visit to Caracas, Livingstone said yesterday that he would act as a consultant on the capital's policing, transport and other municipal issues.
"I believe that Caracas will become a first-world city in 20 years. I have a very extensive network of contacts both domestically and internationally which I will be calling on to assist in this," he told reporters at the presidential palace after meeting Chávez.
The two socialist allies forged a deal last year to swap London's management expertise for subsidised fuel for London's buses. Boris Johnson, the Tory who ousted Livingstone in May's election, cancelled the deal and repaid £7m to Venezuela, an oil giant with widespread poverty.
No one doubts Caracas needs help. Gridlocked traffic, a crumbling centre, hillside slums, horrific murder rates, corrupt police and inept local government have made it one of Latin America's most notorious cities.
No decision had been taken about a salary, said Livingstone. "It depends to what extent we will be tapping into our individual resources. The whole cost of this trip has been paid for by the government of Venezuela and as an unemployed citizen I would not be able to pay for my own fare otherwise."
The state media presented Livingstone as an important asset to pro-Chávez candidates in upcoming local elections. Livingstone seemed optimistic they would win. "We have discussed with the candidates a programme they will take forward after the November elections," he said.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/aug/28/livingstone.venezuela
"I believe that Caracas will become a first-world city in 20 years. I have a very extensive network of contacts both domestically and internationally which I will be calling on to assist in this," he told reporters at the presidential palace after meeting Chávez.
The two socialist allies forged a deal last year to swap London's management expertise for subsidised fuel for London's buses. Boris Johnson, the Tory who ousted Livingstone in May's election, cancelled the deal and repaid £7m to Venezuela, an oil giant with widespread poverty.
No one doubts Caracas needs help. Gridlocked traffic, a crumbling centre, hillside slums, horrific murder rates, corrupt police and inept local government have made it one of Latin America's most notorious cities.
No decision had been taken about a salary, said Livingstone. "It depends to what extent we will be tapping into our individual resources. The whole cost of this trip has been paid for by the government of Venezuela and as an unemployed citizen I would not be able to pay for my own fare otherwise."
The state media presented Livingstone as an important asset to pro-Chávez candidates in upcoming local elections. Livingstone seemed optimistic they would win. "We have discussed with the candidates a programme they will take forward after the November elections," he said.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/aug/28/livingstone.venezuela