Venezuela News: President Nicolas Maduro Will Not Step Down From Office Even After Elections

Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro will not step from office despite the outcome of the upcoming elections. The president of the oil rich country has become increasingly unpopular during the recent years.

In a report with Orange County Register, time may be running out for Venezuela's president as his popularity with Venezuelans takes a nose dive. Leaders of the opposition have appealed to the International Criminal Court in the Hague this week to charge the president with "crimes against humanity." This is in relation to the murders, torture and persecutions that Maduro's reign as president has committed since protests have lashed out the Venezuelan leader last year.

Independent parties are also reporting that should the Dec. 6 national assembly elections turn out fair, Nicolás Maduro's United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) will likely take a beating in the polls, says a report with the Wall Street Journal.

Protests in the country have become the reason why the country has been falling apart with individuals wanting change and looking for new leadership. Hyperinflation and the shortage of basic goods have also angered many Venezuelans.

Despite the protests and the assassination attempts, Maduro has remained tough as he charged Leopoldo Lopez and Antonio Ledesma who were both charged in a conspiracy to overthrow the President. 

"Every fascist has his day," Maduro told Time Magazine of the arrests. 

Maduro had announced earlier in the month that whatever the outcome of the upcoming presidential elections, the PSUV will not give up its powers. The deterioration of diplomatic ties between Venezuela and the US has become even more strained earlier this year when Maduro announced that the socialist nation will be limiting the number of US diplomats who will be allowed to work in the country. Additionally, Maduro said that he will be imposing mandatory visas for Americans travelling to Venezuela, a report with The Guardian said.

"We will prohibit visas for individuals who want to come to Venezuela who have violated human rights and have bombed Iraq, Syria and Vietnam," said Maduro, speaking of banned individuals such as former president George W Bush, former vice-president Dick Cheney, former CIA director George Tenet as well as several lawmakers who have shown opposition towards the Venezuelan government.

Moreover, American prosecutors are steadily putting pressure on high-ranking members of the country's military, police and government officials for their role in making the country a save haven for drugs heading to the U.S. and Europe.

Washington reported that more than 200 tons a year of cocaine goes through Venezuela, which is about a third of Colombia's production.

Two nephews of the president's wife Cilia Flores have also been arrested in New York for trying to smuggle a ton of cocaine into the U.S. The pair have been denied 'diplomatic unity' and have been held without bail.

"We don't believe these individuals have diplomatic immunity," said State Department spokesman Mark Toner of the arrest.