Caracas, 3 de octubre de 2003 - Offnews.info

34remain in Manta, an air base used by the United States military for drugsurveillance flights.Mr. Correa, like most of the other Ecuadorean presidential candidates,disagreed with Mr. Noboa on those issues. Drawing inspiration fromArgentina, Mr. Correa also said he wanted to renegotiate Ecuador's foreigndebt, a move that worried foreign banks about dealing with another messydefault.Mr. Noboa and Mr. Correa both campaigned as populists, as did GilmarGutierrez, the brother of a deposed former president, who finished third. Mr.Noboa campaigned from the right as a God-fearing businessman, promisingcheap housing and handing out free wheelchairs to handicapped supporters.Mr. Correa promises a ''citizen's revolution'' by rewriting Ecuador'sConstitution. He also evoked an affinity with Mr. Chavez by professingadmiration for the Venezuelan's ''Bolivarian'' ideals.Mr. Correa said during the campaign that Mr. Chavez was a friend andacknowledged meeting with him in Venezuela as recently as August. Herepeatedly denied receiving campaign financing from Venezuela'sgovernment.Almost until the voting on Sunday, the election seemed Mr. Correa's to lose.One opinion poll by Cedatos/Gallup put his support at 37 percent at the startof October, within grasp of winning the 40 percent necessary for a firstroundvictory. He would also have needed a 10 percentage point lead to win.Venezuela Hits in Advance 2006 Tax Haul TargetVenezuelan tax agency Seniat hit in advance the tax haul target for full-year2006, which was set at 39.8 trln Venezuelan bolivars ($18.535 bln/14.802bln euro).The receipts from internal taxes totalled 27.7 trln bolivars ($12.9 bln/10.302bln euro), the national tax superintendent, Jose Gregorio Vielma Mora, said.