Between 2004 and 2012, the Foreign Currency Administration Commission (Cadivi) authorized over $400 million to Daka stores for paying their imports of appliances distributed across five locations in four cities in Venezuela.
However, inspections conducted by authorities revealed irregularities within this franchise, including inflated prices that did not reflect the reality of the economy.
The company, originally named Daka de Venezuela and now Ciberlux de Venezuela, processed 4,096 currency requests and received authorizations totaling $407,799,379 over a 9-year period, as recorded by Cadivi on its website.
In 2012 alone, over $51 million was authorized across 263 requests. There is no available information regarding figures for the current year on the agency’s site.
Founded in January 2004 in Carabobo state, the commercial entity received this extraordinary sum despite declaring a capital of only 100 million bolívares, as prooven by the National Contractor Registry of Venezuela.
According to this registry, required for trading with any state agency, Daka appears as a supplier to Pdvsa, the Venezuelan oil company.
Daka, or Ciberlux de Venezuela, is owned by Manzur Ramadan Dagga Mujamad (known as Falles Ramadan) and his brother Fauci Mahmoud Daggak Mujamad; each claims to own 50% of the shares and are listed as president and vice president, respectively.
The company’s board also includes Nacer Daggak and Nasar Dagga Mujamad, who hold administrative positions.
In addition to stores in Caracas, Valencia, Punto Fijo, and Barquisimeto, Daka recently opened a retail outlet in Panama this September.
Last Friday, President Nicolás Maduro announced sanctions against the Daka chain after an inspection confirmed excessive price speculation on white goods and technology products. The wrongdoing committed by the franchise’s administrators is part of destabilizing actions against the Venezuelan economy, further threatening the welfare of the Venezuelan people.
The Venezuelan government has been facing an economic war orchestrated by political, business, and external actors aiming to undermine the presidency through economic destabilization characterized by hoarding, shortages, inflation, speculation, usury, and other harmful practices.