Evo Morales reinforces “self-coup” attempt in Bolivia in favor of Arce

Former Bolivian President Evo Morales said this Saturday (29) that the military rebellion to take over the presidential palace was a “self-coup” to benefit the image of the current Chief Executive, Luis Arce.

“Lucho deceived us, he lied to us, he lied to Bolivians and to the entire world. Whether it was a coup or a self-coup is up for debate, (but) I am more convinced that it was a self-coup to improve his image or to hand over the presidency to the military junta,” Evo told local newspaper La Razón, referring to Arce by his nickname.

Morales’ statements are consistent with those of General Juan Zúñiga, accused of leading the coup and who was transferred to a maximum security prison on Saturday (29). When he was arrested on Wednesday night (26), Zúñiga said that the coup attempt was masterminded by Arce. The president’s idea, according to the general, was to increase his popularity amid the chaos.

The former president and leader of the Movement for Socialism (MAS) also compared the current economic situation with that of his government. According to him, the insurgency was to disguise what he considers to be Arce’s poor management of the country. Since then, he said, there has been no talk of the lack of fuel and dollars in Bolivia.