She questions the interim government’s authority to negotiate
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado
Machado said the news has generated “deep concern over the implications it has for the future of our country.”
By Efecto Cocuyo
HAVANA TIMES – Opposition leader María Corina Machado spoke out Thursday about the recent announcement of a large-scale oil agreement between the United States government and the Venezuelan government of Delcy Rodriguez.
Machado said she understands the emotional impact the announcement has had on the public, stating: “I know what you are feeling: sadness, anger, that sense of unease so often repeated throughout our history when someone decides what to do with what belongs to us, in our name, without consulting us.” In her view, the news has generated “deep concern over the implications it has for the future of our country.”
In her message to the nation, Marina Corina said the true scope of the agreement remains unknown and questioned the lack of transparency surrounding the process.
“Who is signing it? What exactly is being signed? Who is putting up the money? Who is providing the guarantees? How does this benefit Venezuelans?” she asked.
Although she reaffirmed the importance of the bilateral alliance, noting that “the United States is the principal partner Venezuela needs to fully develop its strategic value,” she emphatically stressed that “the resources beneath our soil does not belong to an illegitimate regime; they belong to the Venezuelan people.”
Machado also warned that the recovery of the energy sector cannot take place in isolation from the country’s institutional crisis. “In a country with Venezuela’s size and institutional fragility, no sector can function in isolation; we need the entire country to function,” she said.
Regarding the attraction of foreign investment, she emphasized the need for a “win-win” relationship and stressed that “all of this requires sustained work under the non-negotiable principles of absolute transparency, legality and efficiency, and this is only possible with the legitimacy and stability provided by a serious, democratic government.”
Finally, the opposition leader reiterated the principles of her energy proposal presented in Houston, which calls for a transparent legal framework approved by a legitimate National Assembly, an independent hydrocarbons agency, open bidding, a competitive tax regime, and international arbitration.
In conclusion, she insisted that economic development is meaningless if it does not improve citizens’ quality of life, stating that “Venezuelans know there can be no development without strong institutions and a government elected by popular vote; that is the only true guarantee of success and stability for any large-scale investment.”
First published in Spanish by Efecto Cocuyo and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.
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