the loyal soldiers who protect Nicolás Maduro

It is the military who protect and prolong the permanence of the regime of Nicolás Maduro. Faithful allies, each in its different areas of the military establishment complements and articulates to give the president Venezuela a power base supported by force of arms, terror, repression and corruption, say his comrades in arms.

Who are they God gave hair and Vladimir Padrino López.

The fate of the country is in their hands: they will say whether or not they will deliver Maduro to American justice, which offers Reward of $ 15 million for his capture.

The decision will depend on their conscience and their willingness to negotiate to save themselves from the fall after 22 years of failures that led to the destruction of Venezuela.

Faithful Laderos by Hugo Chávez

Lieutenant Cabello and General Padrino participated in the coup attempt of February 4, 1992 under the command of the late Hugo Chávez.

The former was very active in the coup against then-President Carlos Andrés Pérez, while the latter preferred to remain hidden and passive in the rear, according to the chronicles of the time.

Both soldiers are sanctioned by the United States and the European Union. Cabello is retired and has a $ 10 million reward for his capture.

But godfather no, although they are both accused of being allegedly linked to drug trafficking, money laundering, terrorism and crimes against humanity for human rights violations before the International Criminal Court.

The powerful Minister of Defense

The new General Vladimir Padrino López is the oldest Minister of Defense of the Republican history of Venezuela.

He has been in office for seven years, looking after Maduro’s back, while the tradition is only a year to prevent incumbents from enchanting each other at Fort Tiuna, headquarters of the military portfolio.

This four-soled general, born in Caracas 58 years ago, should already be retired for having accomplished over 30 years of service, but Maduro left him because he is the only one who can guarantee him the loyalty and control of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB).

“He did not remove it because he could not find anyone else with his characteristics who could replace him,” said an analyst who requested anonymity.

The person who knows best about the negative transformations that the FANB has undergone is the former Minister of Defense, Fernando Ochoa Antich. In dialogue with Bugle underlines that beyond the complicity that the military have with Maduro, Chavismo imposed a political system that guarantees stability and continuity.

“The military gained so much power because they controlled all factors throughout these 22 years of Chavismo, such as FANB ideology, terror and corruption. The armed force has been corrupted, ”said Ochoa Antich, who did not want to personalize any of his comrades in arms for fear of reprisals.

Maduro rewarded the loyalty of the Minister of Defense, turning him into the richest and most powerful military man in the country.

Padrino runs CAMIMPEG, which is the military stock company for the mining, oil and gas industries. This enterprise manufactures uniforms, dairy production, agricultural enterprises confiscated from metallurgy, oil and gas.

Luxury and waste life

Padrino also controls more than 600 confiscated state-owned companies, more than eleven ministries, 1,500 service stations, two dozen parliamentary soldiers and the military attachés of the embassies of the foreign service of the country.

General Padrino loves the sweetness of life and beautiful celebrations, as the social chronicles of Caracas show. His two sons Yarazeth and Mitchell are not far behind in Spain, where they are known for life full of luxury and waste they lead.

At the exclusive Bling Bling nightclub in Madrid, they went on a multi-day spree that cost astronomical bills that were ultimately paid with the proceeds of the Corruption.

It is striking that the United States did not put a price on the arrest of Padrino as it did on the eleven Chavist leaders for whose arrests it is proposing. $ 90 million in rewards.

“For strategic reasons, I guess Padrino was left unrewarded so that at some point he could end the regime. He had the opportunity to hand Maduro over, but he has not yet done so, ”criminal lawyer Alejandro Rebolledo told Bugle.

Rebolledo, also a magistrate of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) in exile, considers that Padrino is victim and hostage of his own network and of the labyrinth he has built.

“He lives tied up and guarded 24 hours a day by Russian and Cuban intelligence mafias. It is entrusted to the maneuver and support services of terrorist groups, guerrillas, drug traffickers and paramilitaries that they themselves have built. This is why he does nothing ”.

Diosdado Cabello, the man with the “stick”

From number two in Maduro’s eight years, he became third in the chain of command when he was moved by Jorge Rodríguez, the president of the Chavista National Assembly, last January.

Diosdado Cabello is no more than a deputy and first vice-president of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela. But it still retains a lot of power and weight.

It controls the ruling party, officers of the middle army, law enforcement agencies, courts, public finances, the electrical appliance trade, department stores, part of gas and oil production, mining gold, diamonds and coltan.

He was born in El Furial, an oil town of Monagas, in a humble house and is now a tycoon who made millions in the heat of the Chavist revolution.

They say he owns half of Venezuela. He amassed his fortune in all the public positions he held, for example as governor of Miranda, president of the National Assembly, president of the National Constituent Assembly. It also controls a large part of the justice system, in particular the criminal courts.

His method was to place figureheads, childhood friends and comrades in arms in key positions in public administration and in confiscated businesses. Thus woven a corruption network with faithful partners who give their lives for him. Hence its influence on the middle layer of army officers.

The most chavista

Cabello is the most Chavist of all the leaders of the regime. It is he who defends the heritage of the caudillo so much that he forced all the institutions and all the ministries to put up a sign at the entrance which says: “Here, we do not speak badly of Chávez”.

The chanting voice of the Chavist narrative has been exercised for the last 6 years in his program “With the mazo giving” broadcast every Wednesday by the Venezolana de Televisión, a state-owned enterprise until this week. He had to suspend it because a Covid-19 epidemic appeared among his employees.

In his TV show, Cabello, he showed the strength of his club. He had a large audience, everyone saw him, both chavistas and opponents.

It was a window into the hunt he was leading against regime critics. All he had to do was threaten someone to see him imprisoned the next day. The same with the lawsuits he brought against newspapers such as The National O As such be cornered the next day.

Cabello is no longer the second in command, but he continues to be influential in the barracks even though he has accounts pending with international justice.

Caracas, special

CB