The Latest Shameless StUNT

Un Nuevo Tiempo once again busts my decency-o-meter with a move so boldly treacherous it makes their previous backstabbing pale in comparison.

Imagine this context: the regime in charge of your country creates yet another fictional threat against the people when the president decrees that the highest denomination banknotes are invalid from now on, in preparation for the release of new bills, scheduled for next Thursday, December 15. They support this with a wild conspiracy about mafias stealing paper money from the nation and instantly send the payment system into disarray, for no good reason.

Try to wrap your head around what this could cause in any borderline functional democracy. Now, imagine what it can cause in a dying economy led by the most baneful creatures ever to have ruled your country, and after a failed dialogue that has stripped your only political opposition coalition off most of its credibility.

Sadly, we Venezuelans don’t have to imagine it.

Earlier this year, Eveling Trejo threw a party with all but one opposition mayor in the state, to sign their support for Maduro’s illegal Budget Law.

And yet, this is exactly the setting as Timoteo Zambrano releases a statement announcing  UNT will continue to participate in dialogue, even after the rest of MUD decided to stay away from the negotiating table until the government makes good on past commitments.

Thiss isn’t even the first time UNT leaders have dazzled us with their turncloakiness this year. Shortly after Zambrano’s stunt, which earned him a quick dismissal from MUD’s Foreign Affairs coordination, Maracaibo mayor Eveling Trejo (who’s married to UNT founder, former Zulia governor and current political prisoner Manuel Rosales), threw a party with all but one opposition mayor in the state, to sign their support for Maduro’s illegal Budget Law.

The other opposition parties promptly expelled the mayors involved.

You’ll recall that when VP dissented from MUD’s decision to participate in an (obviously doomed) dialogue, the naranjas were careful their decision was announced by MUD, so it wasn’t seen as a challenge to unity. Las formas, y’know?

Timoteo has no such compunctions: he just announced UNT is breaking unity on all his own. Estamos chévere…

I don’t trust our leadership like I used to, but they’re still my political representatives and I demand they act as such this time. MUD must make it clear that there are consequences to freelancing your own political line. Otherwise, what ‘unity’ are we even talking about?

The time to call bullshit is now. Otherwise, this shame’s on them as well.