
Humberto Calderon Berti (left), former deputy Guaido (center) and Leopoldo Lopez (right). Photo courtesy of Maduradas.com.
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Humberto Calderon Berti (left), former deputy Guaido (center) and Leopoldo Lopez (right). Photo courtesy of Maduradas.com.
Humberto CalderĂłn Berti, an oil expert who acted as an âambassadorâ of the pseudo-government of former deputy GuaidĂł in Colombia, accused the far-right politician Leopoldo LĂłpez of being âthe main person responsible for what happened to MonĂłmeros,â as he imposed the practice of distributing appointments based on political affinities and not on technical skills.
âUnfortunately that was done contrary to what should have been done,” said CalderĂłn Berti in an interview with journalist CĂŠsar Miguel RondĂłn this Thursday, September 30. “It began to be politicized, and the political leaders considered that as a kind of piĂąata. It seemed absolutely inadvisable to me.”
CalderĂłn Berti, who held the presidency of the state-owned PetrĂłleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) during the 1980s, indicated that he was consulted by representatives of the “interim office” about the most suitable way to manage the Venezuelan company, but his recommendations apparently were ignored.
Similarly, the politician affirmed that instead of appointingâall illegallyâprofessionals with the appropriate qualifications, the hiring of âpeople whose credentials were being members of political partiesâ was privileged, and after offering this description he singled out Leopoldo LĂłpez:
RELATED CONTENT: Opposition Politicians Repudiate Colombiaâs Expropriation of MonĂłmeros
âYou don’t have to turn it around too much,” CalderĂłn Berti said directly. “The main person responsible for what has happened in MonĂłmeros is named Leopoldo LĂłpez, who is politicized excessively, with striking sectarianism. He politicizes everything he puts his hand to, and he is the one who is largely responsible for everything that is happening.”
In addition, CalderĂłn Berti asserted that this situation is repeated in other Venezuelan state companies abroad appropriated by GuaidĂł’s agents, such as CITGO in the United States, today about to be auctioned off in US courts.
CalderĂłn Berti admitted that when he arrived in CĂşcuta in January 2019, news reached his ears about the malicious handling of the supposed humanitarian aid that would be delivered to Venezuela, a fact that he felt responsible for reporting to the Colombian authorities and then to the media, once he was stripped of his pseudo-diplomatic post in favor of TomĂĄs Guanipa.
Humberto Calderon Aberto, Former fake Guaidoâs ambassador to Colombia: Leopoldo Lopez responsible for Monomeros bankruptcy. Corruption blows Guaidoâs gang and G4. https://t.co/NqyqCRIqtI
— Orinoco Tribune (@OrinocoTribune) October 1, 2021
“The same people who were there in MonĂłmeros at the end are people linked to what was happening in CĂşcuta, which I denounced in due time,” he said.
RELATED CONTENT: El Aissami: Venezuela Wonât Allow Robbery of CITGO & MonĂłmeros
Instead of âallying themselvesâ with him, this group of corrupt peopleâin his own words, people close to Juan GuaidĂł and Leopoldo LĂłpezâclaiming to act âin defense of the interests of the Venezuelan population… declared a war led by Leopoldo LĂłpez.â
The current candidate for the governorship of Zulia, Manuel Rosales, without holding any position, led a meeting in which some of the members of the Energy and Mines Commission of Parliamentâin contempt at that timeâparticipated. Members of the pseudo-board of directors âappointedâ by GuaidĂł would also be involved in the plunder of MonĂłmeros.
At that meeting, CalderĂłn Berti explained, the pseudo-officials who controlled MonĂłmeros complained that their friends had not been awarded contracts. “In protest I stopped, and left,” he said.
In his opinion, the âpoliticizationâ imposed by LĂłpez was a precursor to the debacle that MonĂłmeros is experiencing today. Following an intervention by the Superintendency of Corporations of Colombia, the company now faces a clear risk of being expropriated or auctioned off, due to the interest that political and commercial entities have shown in the company, which supplies about 50% of the fertilizers used in Colombia.
CalderĂłn Berti assured that his case was not the only one, and that “what happens is that nobody dares to say anything… There are many who have resigned for the same reasons that I denounced in Colombia, and no one has dared to say so, due to improper and sectarian interference by Leopoldo LĂłpez in the conduct of the interim government.”
Featured image: Humberto CalderĂłn Berti (left), former deputy Guaido (center) and Leopoldo LĂłpez (right). Photo courtesy of Maduradas.com.
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SL
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