Venezuela earthquake is further blow at time of uncertainty
Rodríguez addressed the nation on state television channel VTV more than two hours after the earthquakes.
Before this, official information was very scant; This was undoubtedly because communication channels to some of the worst-affected areas were closed. But this is also a result of the restrictions imposed on independent media under the Maduro government; These restrictions have led to the closure of hundreds of local radio stations and news sites that have played a key role in providing localized updates in the past.
Rodríguez was flanked by his brother Jorge, who swore him in as interim president as president of the National Assembly a few days after Maduro’s seizure, and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, another staunch ally of Maduro.
Cabello was not wearing military fatigues, as she often did in the months before the US military intervention. Like his brother, he stood silently next to Rodriguez.
Rodríguez was visibly shaken as he delivered the speech in which he called for unity “above all else” among the Venezuelan people, who have been deeply divided between those who have supported Maduro for more than a decade and those who oppose his predecessor and mentor Hugo Chavez.
He also declared a state of emergency and tasked Gen. Juan Ernesto Sulbarán, commander of the Venezuelan National Guard, with leading the emergency response.
During the more than a quarter-century that Chavez and Maduro have been in power, key positions in the government have been held by high-ranking military officers.
Many government ministries have been in the hands of generals for years, and analysts say one reason why Venezuela’s infrastructure is so broken is a lack of expertise on the part of those in charge.
Under the watchful eye of the Trump administration, Rodríguez recently replaced the general who ran the housing ministry with a civilian with an architecture degree, and the general who ran the electricity ministry with an electrical engineer.
But shortages and mismanagement, made worse by years of US sanctions, mean much of the public housing stock, in particular, has deteriorated.
For example, cement shortages triggered by the collapse of the state-owned cement industry after its nationalization under the Chavez administration means that much-needed repairs to buildings and homes often go unmade, making them more prone to collapse.
