Even though many thought it was a thing of the past, the National Assembly of 2015 is receiving unfrozen funds from the OFAC, a department of the United States Treasury that will provide USD 10 million to the opposition-controlled legislative body, which led to what was called the interim government of Venezuela.
Although unofficially, it has recently come to light that the delegated commission of the National Assembly (AN) of 2015 received the mentioned amount through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). These are funds—originally unfrozen from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York—that belong to Venezuela.
Despite the fact that in December 2024 the Unitary Platform announced plans to end the 2015 National Assembly, its president, Dinorah Figuera, informed U.S. Ambassador Francisco Palmieri about the approval of a one-year extension of its mandate.
A decision that was reportedly made in a “secret session” on December 14, 2024, without any minutes or recordings available to confirm it.
Venezuela’s Funds Depleted
The matter became public through a deputy linked to the committee, who mentioned the delivery of the money, which, according to what is known, will be the last release of funds made under this mechanism, as available resources are believed to be depleted.
The lack of transparency regarding these deliveries is due to the fact that OFAC is not obligated to publicly inform about the release of these special funds.
It has been reported that these resources—the USD 10 million—will be used to fund political parties, pay the delegates of the commission, and support a group of activists selected by the parties that make up the Unitary Platform.
The parties Primero Justicia (PJ), Un Nuevo Tiempo (UNT), Acción Democrática (AD), and Voluntad Popular (VP) will receive a greater proportion, while other parties will receive funds proportional to their representation.
As a reminder, this funding mechanism was initiated with the “Heroes of Health” program aimed at healthcare personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic and was later expanded to include delegates and activists. The request for these USD 10 million was made in January of this year and was recently approved.
Financing the Interim Government, the AN, and Political Parties
The mentioned funding mechanism was previously used by the Interim Government. It also covered the fees of law firms that defended the Republic’s assets in various federal courts in the United States.
The opacity in managing these funds has led to corruption accusations against former deputy Juan Guaidó, who, along with his team, headed the interim government. This entire operation was made possible thanks to the Transition Statute, developed by Juan Miguel Matheus of Primero Justicia.
The Legislative Gazette No. 71 dated March 27, 2023, reports, for instance, the allocation process of USD 49,387,866.43 through additional credit that the National Assembly 2015 received from the Special Fund for the Liberation of Venezuela and Attention to Vital Risk Cases.
The funds were intended for the special budget of the AN for the year 2023, which was extended at that time until December 31, 2023.
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