Caracas Chronicles

• Primero Justicia proposed an independent board in charge of managing Venezuelan assets abroad, meaning Monómeros. They questioned that Voluntad Popular insists on political organizations part of the Unitary Platform managing these assets, which PJ considers hinders parties’ abilities to work on political change: “We must take radical actions to protect this asset from corruption, Maduro and creditors.” 
  • They insisted on using Julio Borge’s idea: an external escrow, managed by institutions like the World Bank or the IDB,  overseeing Venezuelan assets abroad with the supervision of this independent board, also in charge of appointing the boards of directors of every asset.  
• Maduro’s Electricity minister, Néstor Reverol, forbade CORPOELEC workers from reporting on the failures of the electricity system. 
• Maduro blamed Colombia and Duque’s government for the failures in public utilities like electricity, water, and communications in Venezuela, and assured that they are ordered from Colombia. He said they’re preparing “a superior security plan” to protect facilities and all services. 
• According to Maduro, his Science and Technology minister and delegate in Mexico Gabriela Jiménez has devoted herself to “dismantling the lies of the right.” 
• Maduro’s Assembly deputy Elio Serrano assured that the Law of Security of the Electricity System and Service would allow participation of the People’s Power Branch, denouncing sabotage and training security corps. 
• Oil minister Tareck El Aissami met with the OPEC secretary-general Mohammed Barkindo and expressed the need for help in facing the “harassment by the U.S.”
• The president of the Venezuelan Oil Chamber Reinaldo Quintero said an increase of the price of cooking gas is necessary, in order to cover the operational costs of the sector. He considers it unlikely that the regime’s oil production goal can be achieved in 2021. 

A new survey by Focus Economics for Latin America estimates that by December 2021, the dollar will reach 12.5 Bs. and it foresees that 1,557% will be the inflation rate by the end of the year. 

• National Electoral Council (CNE) board member Roberto Picón assured that they’re looking into the measures barring several candidates from running for office. 
• The CNE started a debate on the special rules for the campaign for November, a new opportunity to impose more control in complying with the rules, stopping the use of public funds for the PSUV’s campaign and reporting irregularities. 
• Maduro’s Education minister Yelitze Santaella ratified that the 2021-2022 school year will restart on September 16th, and assured that they’re developing a plan to rescue the infrastructure. She said 86% of teachers and other workers in the sector have been vaccinated. 
• Monitor Salud reported 205 cases of COVID-19 in the healthcare sector during the first 14 days of the month and 747 workers have died since the start of the pandemic.
• The Centro para los Defensores y la Justicia reported that there were 46 attacks and security incidents against human rights activists in August. 
• Foreign minister Félix Plasencia reaffirmed the regime’s will to work with the UN, while they receive UNHCR’s representative Enrique Valles-Ramos. 
• ULA Human Rights Observatory said that universities aren’t ready to receive students for in-person classes because of the dismantling of their spaces, the lack of dignified wages and poor public utilities. 
• 22 migrants from Haiti, Cuba and Venezuela and 16 Mexican citizens were kidnapped on Tuesday in Mexico and were found in San Luis Potosí. 
• The UN canceled an exposition on Venezuelan migrants in the Dominican Republic after threats of extremists. Manny Solano is leading the group and has attacked the work of the UNHCR and the IMO. 

Trinidad and Tobago police arrested 34 Venezuelans when they found them on a Trinidadian beach. There are 19 adults and 15 minors in the group and they’re in quarantine. 

• Joe Biden’s government mentioned several Latin American countries among the main nations where drugs are produced or used for transit and said that Venezuela and Bolivia failed in their obligations in fighting drug trafficking.