Caracas Chronicles

Photo: El Español, retrieved.

• On Monday, Nicolás did his variety show with his prêt-à-porter opposition from Miraflores Palace. Claudio Fermín and Jorge Rodríguez asked the National Assembly to appoint a new board of authorities for the National Electoral Council (CNE) soon, which sows even more reluctancy about fair elections. Celebrating the appointment of ten representatives from the civil society that will comprise the Electoral Nomination Committee, the regime takes the AN’s merits away and polarizes the ambient even further. On purpose.
• Deputy Ángel Alvarado, member of the AN’s Finance Commission, said that Nicolás’s government is not entirely honest regarding Venezuelan figures before CAF, and on Tuesday they intend to sell the country’s actions in CAD to prevent forfeiting payments. He warned that if the operation does take place, Venezuela will be left out of their directory, a credit line for rebuilding the country will be lost and Caracas will cease being the institutions headquarters. Special Attorney General José Ignacio Hernández said the regime “can’t transfer Venezuelan actions in CAF” and this transaction won’t be recognized, in accordance with Article 312 of our Constitution. 
• Diosdado Cabello accused the opposition and caretaker President Juan Guaidó of “faking fake positives” when he talked about the violence against the opposition rally last Saturday, in Barquisimeto.  Cabello denied there was a gunman: “An armed man, and nobody’s alarmed, they’re all calm, he keeps talking, nobody yells to get down,” even though photos show otherwise. He also said it was untrue that Guaidó called one of the people injured because the guy wasn’t there and his parents are chavistas. He mocked the requests for protection for Guaidó, made by Colombian President Iván Duque. As usual, he was promoting hate. He also spoke about the FAES’ actions, which left four dead people and several injured last week at the Francisco Fajardo highway. He said FAES “is on the streets and will continue to be so, even if Guaidó doesn’t like the FAES for hidden reasons.” 
• Foro Penal asked the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet for a stronger stance when she requests freedom for political prisoners. Alfredo Romero asked her to be “firmer” on this topic: “It’s about human beings who are unfairly deprived of freedom and their families cry every day for their release.”
• The company Mercantile & Maritime will stop transporting Venezuelan oil for Rosneft, said Reuters. The measure comes after the U.S. sanctioned Rosneft Trading for doing business with Venezuelan oil. Mercantile & Maritime’s fleet was one of Rosneft Trading’s main transport suppliers in the last year. 
• On Monday, posters of the late rebel and CICPC inspector Óscar Pérez appeared at the National Pantheon, bearing slogans like “We’ll get you here soon” and “The country’s hero,” plus photos of the agent, killed by state security forces on January 15th, 2018 (El Junquito Massacre). FAES officers later burned the signs. Deputy Delsa Solórzano, among others, rejected the action.
• Journalist Javier Ignacio Mayorca reported that, in Vargas state, a special operation to ship 16 containers of medicine that Nicolás donated to Cuba was ordered. Meanwhile, there’s a critical shortage of medicine in the country and they use sanctions to justify it. 
• Táchira and Mérida were left in the dark on Monday afternoon. These are some of the states hit the hardest by several-hour-long power failures every day. 
• Economist Asdrúbal R. Oliveros, director of Ecoanalitica, said that according to his estimates, inflation during February 2020 is the lowest since March 2017: less than 20%.
• The National Union Coalition protested at the Education Ministry and called for a march on Tuesday to demand fair wages. Once more, teachers were harassed and attacked by chavismo’s colectivos. 
• President Iván Duque, in a joint statement with President Donald Trump, said that “it’s important to issue stronger sanctions against Venezuela.” He said that both countries are working for Venezuelans’ wellbeing. President Trump mentioned the public services and health disaster in Venezuela and talked about working together in order to achieve an efficient political and democratic transition in Venezuela.
• The Lima Group and the government of Canada condemned the acts of violence against caretaker President Guaidó, the people in the march and members of the press in Barquisimeto, last Saturday. They asked the international community to stand together in working for the return of Venezuelan democracy.