Maduro's elements are likely to be thoroughly cleared out by Venezuela's interim president.
Xinhua confirmed on the 16th that Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, reshuffled the cabinet again on the 15th: Nelson Rodríguez took over as Minister of Environment, and Paula Posani (a PhD in architecture) became Minister of Housing. This marks her Nth cabinet overhaul since assuming office on January 5th—17 ministers replaced within three months, including removing Maduro loyalist Defense Minister Padrino, extraditing pro-Maduro figure Sabu to the U.S., and transferring oil revenues into accounts under U.S. oversight.
Half a year, 40% cabinet turnover—Maduro imprisoned in New York, Caracas’s “sovereignty outsourcing” has entered a refined phase.
The two new appointments carry subtle implications: the environment minister succeeds Freddy Ñáñez, a key figure from the Maduro era. Who controls Venezuela’s “Pachamama” environmental discourse determines who controls Chavismo symbolism.
Minister of Housing Paula Posani, a technocrat with a background in architecture, embodies Rodríguez’s strategy of using professional faces to soften the political purge. Housing involves land, slums, and community organizations—the last remaining grassroots voting base for the Chavistas.
Meanwhile, Maduro and his wife remain detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, with their next court hearing scheduled for June 30th. In Caracas’s presidential palace, the interim president is replacing officials one after another according to the U.S. script: CIA director stationed on-site, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Kevin visited Venezuela in May, and U.S. military Ospreys have landed at the American embassy.
For 27 years, Chavismo was built on anti-Americanism. Now, as that anti-American foundation fades, what remains is merely an empty shell awaiting reorganization by external forces. Rodríguez seeks American endorsement to secure her position in the "post-Maduro era"—but loyalists are already taking to the streets shouting “traitor.” Her brother, Jorge Rodríguez, is gradually losing influence in the National Assembly.
The cost of sovereignty outsourcing is never paid immediately. It only hits home five years later, when you realize every gear in your nation’s machinery bears someone else’s name—and then it’s too late to feel the pain.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1868220907184139/
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