Mr. Maduro in His Labyrinth

Mr. Maduro in His Labyrinth
By THE EDITORIAL BOARDJAN. 26, 2015

Framed portraits of the Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez were propped up at
various stops of President Nicolás Maduro's recent whirlwind trip
abroad, as the man at the helm of the nation with the world's largest
oil reserves begged for bailouts.

Posters of his predecessor also abounded when Mr. Maduro, a former bus
driver, arrived home to a carnival-like welcome, as he drove the lead
coach of a convoy that snaked through crowds of supporters.

Last week, in a speech before lawmakers, Mr. Maduro, whose approval
rating has slipped to 22 percent as the Venezuelan economy teeters on
the brink of collapse, again invoked his mentor in predicting a
landslide victory in upcoming parliamentary elections. "I have no doubt
that Chávez's nation will deliver a great victory in the memory of Hugo
Chávez in elections that are being held this year," he said.

Since he was voted into office in April 2013 by a minuscule margin after
Mr. Chávez's death, Mr. Maduro has leaned heavily on the legacy of his
predecessor, a populist who governed poorly but had magnetic charisma
and shrewd political instincts. Woefully lacking on both fronts, Mr.
Maduro has become increasingly erratic and despotic in a quest for
political survival that seems more daunting by the day. Healthy oil
export revenue allowed Mr. Chávez to build a robust network of patronage
and create generous welfare programs during his 14 years in power. Those
are becoming increasingly paltry on Mr. Maduro's watch.

The tumbling price of oil, which accounts for 95 percent of Venezuela's
export earnings, has nearly destroyed an economy that has been managed
dismally for years. Inflation rose to 64 percent last year. On
Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund predicted that Venezuela's
economy would contract 7 percent in 2015, which could force Mr. Maduro's
government to default on its loans or significantly curtail the
subsidized oil his country provides to allies in the Caribbean,
including Cuba.

Mr. Maduro has been vague about the type of painful economic measures
his government has been willing to embrace, yet he bafflingly has
promised to expand social programs and raise salaries. Far from
acknowledging responsibility for the crisis, he and his loyalists have
blamed the revenue shortfalls on political opponents they accuse of
enabling an international conspiracy.

They have jailed one of the most prominent figures in the opposition,
Leopoldo López, since last February on trumped up charges of stoking
violent protests a year ago. During Mr. López's Kafkaesque trial, which
is still in process, prosecutors have argued that he instigated
bloodshed through subliminal messages.

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RECENT COMMENTS

Uga Muga 18 hours ago
Awash with oil the host government delivers vinager. Stick with the
program and salad days shall surely arrive.
Johndrake07 18 hours ago
"The tumbling price of oil, which accounts for 95% of Venezuela's export
earnings, has nearly destroyed an economy that has been managed...
Urizen 18 hours ago
Since the Times wrote such a glowing account of the Saudi dictator/king
who died last week (described by the Times as a "moderate" despite...
SEE ALL COMMENTS
Last month, the authorities in Venezuela charged another opposition
leader, María Corina Machado, with plotting to assassinate Mr. Maduro —
a ludicrous, unfounded allegation against another inspiring challenger.

The crackdown on the opposition, unobstructed by a weak and compromised
press, appears to be an effort to divert attention from Venezuelans'
deteriorating quality of life. Security forces have been deployed to
maintain order outside supermarkets, where people line up for hours to
scrounge whatever is left on depleted shelves.

On a recent afternoon, a Venezuelan woman who had been waiting in line
since 4 a.m. showed a television journalist from Al Jazeera English her
forearm, where someone had written the number 413 with a black marker to
establish her place in line. "Now we are like cattle," the woman
lamented. "This must end."

Hours later, Mr. Maduro's government responded with its standard effort
to find a scapegoat for the national calamity. The head of the National
Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, in a televised address, called the
journalist, Mónica Villamizar, an American spy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/26/opinion/mr-maduro-in-his-labyrinth.html?_r=0