By Luis
Manuel Aguana
I have always been struck by the phrase that many friends repeat to me: “What you write is very interesting, but (always the ‘but’...) I stop reading when you bring up your constant topic of the Constituent Assembly...” Apparently, after years of discussing the issue, it has become tiresome for my friends... And that is very unfortunate because if there is one thing we must begin to address right now, at this crucial moment for our country, and in greater depth, it is precisely the convening of a National Constituent Assembly. And not only in this modest space, but everyone who desires the stability of a possible new transitional government, after whatever may happen to Nicolás Maduro Moros' regime, must begin to study what a Constituent process means.
And not only for the rescue of institutions so that the actions of a possible new transitional government can reach their intended goals (a topic I addressed more than 12 years ago: in Spanish, La institucionalidad: ¿Cómo se come eso?, in https://ticsddhh.blogspot.com/2012/01/la-institucionalidad-como-se-come-eso.html) , or explain once again the reasons for and purpose of a Constituent Assembly (which I also did: ANCO, the whys and wherefores of a Constituent Assembly, in https://ticsddhh.blogspot.com/p/anco-whys-and-wherefores-of-constituent.html). No.
And we must address this because I still cannot explain it, because people still confuse the mechanism with the purpose. The only way established by the Constitution (Article 347) to “reset” the country (the button you press on a computer to start everything from the beginning) is through the Constituent Assembly mechanism. To call on the people's sovereignty to listen to us all and debate the future, which is really the reason for that call. But there is terror in doing that. More than 26 years after Chávez destroyed what he called “the moribund” at the time of his first inauguration as President of the Republic, ordinary Venezuelans still feel that the same thing would happen if another Constituent Assembly were convened. As we say in Venezuela, “he who was bitten by a snake is afraid of the grasshopper”.
And the most unfortunate thing is that this perception is fueled by political parties—both old and new—and anyone who wants things to stay the same. The first detractors of a full call to the Venezuelan people to reorganize this disaster are precisely those who created it, because they believe that the people, not without some reason, will demand that they pay the price. And some who do not want to look bad in front of their voters, even though they are convinced of the need to do so, refrain from speaking out or timidly speak out against it, arguing that it is possible to govern with the monstrosity of 1999 and that “the Constitution must be defended.”
But the most extreme thing is what I have recently heard from some figures who insist on calling for elections after a possible removal of the Maduro regime, following a necessary transitional government. That is like someone telling us that, after removing the illegal “squatters” from your rented house after 26 years of using it and tearing it apart, you decide that the destruction of the entire structure and bathrooms can be solved with a coat of paint.
In my previous note (see From Organic Decree to Transition, in https://ticsddhh.blogspot.com/p/from-organic-decree-to-transition.html) I did not refer to the outcome of a possible US intervention in our country, among other reasons because no one knows, except the US President, what will ultimately happen with the forces he has mobilized near Venezuela. I only referred to what should happen next in the event of a possible sudden absence of the country's current rulers, recalling what has happened in Venezuela in more than 100 years of coups d'état, well documented by the late Venezuelan historian Jorge Olavarría.
However, the situation in Venezuela today is very different from that experienced in 1958. That year, the Civil-Military Governing Junta headed by VA Wolfgang Larrazabal, after legalizing the parties banned by the Perez Jimenez dictatorship, provided a stable foundation for the political forces of the time to proceed with general elections in December of that year. The only resistance could come from dissident groups within the armed forces themselves, which the Junta managed to keep at bay for peaceful elections at the end of that year.
The Venezuela of 1958 is a far cry from the country we live in today. Currently, Venezuela is invaded by irregular Colombian armed forces in the border states and ravaged by armed paramilitary groups throughout the country, especially in the major cities, with the armed forces accused of being responsible for drug trafficking. This situation is not exactly the best context for managing a peaceful transition as in 1958. Wolfgang Larrazabal managed a kindergarten compared to what a possible transitional government in Venezuela will face.
Any proposal for a peaceful solution in the territory would have to take this situation into account in order to create an institutional foundation that would stabilize the country and provide a legitimate basis for a new post-regime government in Venezuela. It is for this reason that ANCO proposed the constitutional path of a Constituent Assembly at the beginning of October:
As exceptional witnesses to the current political situation in the country, we believe that citizens must play a truly leading role in the event of any unforeseen or other event that disrupts the current institutional state of the country. In this regard, faithful to our republican tradition, to freedom and peace, ANCO PROPOSES that, in order to address the crisis, a National Transitional Government and Representative Democratic Reinstitutionalization be formed, in accordance with and in compliance with Articles 5, 62, 70, 326, 333, 347, and 350 of the Constitution, composed of Venezuelans with impeccable public track records and expertise, with representation from the Armed Forces, recognizing the will expressed by the popular sovereignty on July 28, 2024, and which must be ratified by the Venezuelan people, and legitimized in its origin and performance through a Constituent Convention that provides legitimacy to the transition process and drafts a new, modern, and urgent Social Pact in accordance with Article 347 of the Constitution. The heart of this transition lies in laying the foundations for undertaking the great task of rebuilding Venezuela, with the sovereign accompaniment and support of the people” (see in Spanish, Comunicado ANCO 06-10-2025, in https://ancoficial.blogspot.com/2025/10/comunicado-la-alianza-nacional.html).
Once this National Transitional Government has been submitted to the Venezuelan people for consideration and approval, it would have sufficient legitimacy to govern and stabilize the country, taking the necessary measures urgently required by the Venezuelan people, until power is handed over to those elected in general elections (President and Congress), based on a new Constitution drafted by the legitimate representatives gathered in the National Constituent Assembly convened and approved by the people through the corresponding Constitutional Referendum.
That should be the sequence, and I hope that the international community understands that any other route would be highly politically unstable for Venezuela and the region, because it would be nothing more than replacing a serious situation with another that would surely be worse. Simple elections called by a possible post-regime transitional government do not solve the underlying problem of the country's structural and institutional illegitimacy. And those who besiege the regime from abroad should know this. At this moment, there is no legitimacy whatsoever in any institution of public power in Venezuela. Restoring that legitimacy must be the top priority for anyone who comes to power in Venezuela.
Caracas, November 8, 2025
Blog:
TIC’s & Derechos Humanos, https://ticsddhh.blogspot.com/
Email: luismanuel.aguana@gmail.com
Twitter:@laguana
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