MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday described the first day of a 48-hour nationwide strike by the opposition as a failure, alleging that few workers had joined in the shutdown.
"Today the people again defeated the enemies of the nation when they went to work, to produce and to build the constituent assembly of peace," Maduro tweeted.
Freddy Guevara, vice president of the National Assembly, argued that the call to strike action was heeded in 92 percent of the national territory.
The senior opposition leader admitted on Twitter that staying away from work was a "sacrifice" but urged the population to continue the shutdown into Thursday.
The strike aims at putting pressure at the Venezuelan government ahead of the July 30 election to a new legislative body, the constituent assembly, which is feared to bypass the opposition-controlled lower house of parliament.
