VenEconomy: Maduro’s "Plan for the Economic Counteroffensive" to do Nothing for Venezuela’s Battered Economy From the Editors of VenEconomy Latin American Herald Tribune April 23, 2015
Nicolás Maduro, in light of the upcoming parliamentary elections this year and in observance of Labor Day on May 1, stepped up his attacks on the private business sector.
Perhaps he will do so in a bid to repeat the "Dakazo" experience on the country’s retail stores that yielded so many electoral dividends for him in 2013, and that way regain some popular support. What there is no doubt about is that he is doing things by faithfully following the Socialist Homeland plan that the late Hugo Chávez left him as inheritance, and that has also left Venezuela in ruins.
Over the last couple of days, Maduro has been threatening and intimidating the nation’s entrepreneurs with having a new enabling law enacted soon and sending all of them to prison. He announced that he is making, together with his general staff, the final adjustments to a special plan through which he will face an alleged "economic war" from the private sector of the economy, and that he will unveil the details on May 1, Labor Day.
From his show Contacto con Maduro (contact with Maduro), broadcast on national TV and radio, the President urged the labor sector to "take charge of the plan for the economic counteroffensive" that will consolidate "a great economic revolution of socialist and productive character."
Now Maduro aims to create "popular supply councils." He sees these councils as groups of people that would oversee the operations of each supermarket in order to avoid irregularities and ensure supplies of basic products.
The goal is to defeat, according to Maduro’s own words, "the parasitic and thieving bourgeoisie and oligarchy, who is pulling the strings of the country’s product distribution network and has broken all the rules of the game of the law, the Constitution and the economy. Who has broken all of the basic rules of coexistence, respect for the laws and rules of the economy."
Then, on Wednesday from Puerto La Cruz in Anzoátegui state, Maduro threatened entrepreneurs again by telling them that Fedecámaras (Venezuela’s main business association) won’t be getting any more dollars as he accused them once more for being responsible of the economic war, which he insists is taking place as we speak.
Perhaps Maduro may convince again a specific sector of the population that entrepreneurs are to blame for the general shortages and unbearable inflation issues thanks to this virulent message. Perhaps because of that saying that goes "a lie repeated often enough becomes the truth," a few thousands of Venezuelans may buy him that capitalists caused the devastating problems of production and distribution of food, medicines and other products and basic goods.
But surely Maduro will not be able to get the country out of the hole it has been plunged into for the last 16 years of a failed political and economic model if he doesn’t rectify the course, no matter how many tall stories he may come up with, or how much he insults the private sectors of the economy that are producing and keeping the country afloat, or how many times he corners them, prosecutes them and put them behind bars.
Foreign suppliers will not deliver their inputs, raw materials, and other products and goods until they get paid some $10 billion owed to them for merchandise already delivered. The investment capital will not flow into the country unless the rules of the game are clarified and the rule of law in the country is restored. The production apparatus will not start up if the resources to operate are not guaranteed. It has been written in the pages of history that no country in the world with controls, a persecution of the productive sector and no clear rules of the game, has been able to lift its people out of poverty and misery.
As simple as that!
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