New “Superior Organ for the Popular Defense of the Economy” will face Economic War

This past week President Maduro’s claim that the country is facing an “economic war” by “fascists” has been institutionalized in a new governmental agency. In September 12, addressing a meeting of the chavista youth movement, Maduro announced the creation of a “Superior Organ for the Popular Defense of the Economy.”

“I have personally decided to face the economic battle of the fascist war against the people,” said the President, “I will create a new superior instance of coordination, inspection, and control for the functioning of the whole of the economy.”

This new governmental agency will be coordinated by a “Civic-military-popular High Command” headed Mayor-General Hebert García Plaza and formed by several members of the ministerial cabinet. 

A lower level of the bureaucracy of the new agency was also announced by Maduro: the “Technical Secretariat of the High Command,” also formed by several ministers and staffed with the presidents of governmental institutes such as Indepabis (consumers defense agency), and Sundecop (price controls agency).

Because, according to Maduro, “the Venezuelan right has a plan for each instance [of the economy]”, the new agency will take immediate actions which include:

-The import of more than 600 million dollars in basic goods from Colombia.

-The establishment of an information and denunciation center which can be reached by citizens through the phone number 0800-72268253 (0800-sabotaje)

-The creation of a special inspection and supervision plan that, starting Monday 16, will inspect all production companies to ensure they are operating at full capacity and not sabotaging the economy. For these inspections “we will be helped by thousands of men and women, all incorporated as inspectors,” Maduro declared.

-Transportation and distribution companies will also be inspected to ensure they are delivering the goods because, said Maduro, “[the right] it trying to delay distribution of food products.”