Like a fruit that begins to rot, the symptoms of the beginning are
imperceptible. Then they will accentuate themselves until they can not
longer be hidden.
That's what happens to political regimes.
In the beginning the cases are isolated and disperse, later they
become protuberances and finally the lack of honesty wins it all.
Yesterday Tal Cual told the story of two recent facts through which
not the hidden face of the moon is shown but the one on this side. And
is full of pimples and wrinkles.
One was the gracious award of a bonus of Bs. 15 million to 420 workers
of the Autonomous Institute for the Railroad (IAFE)-by pure
coincidence, of course, two days before the recall referendum.
They are Bs. 6 billion (US$ 2 million) distributed happily, with no
other justification than the delay in the signing of the union
contract.
This practice (the one of a bonus), in these cases of delays is
common. What is unusual, of course, is the disproportionate amount
that the lucky workers of the IAFE received. Could it be that this
bonus is indexed to inflation? They could come back and tell us such a
tale.
But in largesse and waste, the CNE, with its patron saint party that
it began celebrating yesterday, breaks all records. Even if the amount
of money that the CNE will dilapidate is much less than that of the
trains-188 millions, a mere peanut shell compared to the other
one-qualitatively speaking the immorality is larger. 60 million for a
party at the Military Circle, 22 million, 22 million in caps, t shirts
and key chains; 15 million in a magazine that nobody will read and
million and millions more in "performances", musical groups, plays,
flowers for the Liberator, arrangements for the godmother,
arrangements for a church, a car rally that symbolically begins at the
CNE and ends at the military circle, place f residence of
"tramparente" Carrasquero, posters, sports trophies, kid storybooks, a
horse race (at which there will be a toast for 12 million). Nothing
has been left to chance. A forward looking hand wrote next to a budget
item of 4 million for the güiski "careful, do not exclude".
Elementary. Any situation, Carrasquero must have thought, can be
overcome (sobrevenida) except what has to do with alcohol. And let it
be 18 years old.
It is the usual Saudi-like style, but worse. In the spirit of the
"Great Venezuela", but worse. The carelessness with public funds, but
worse. Ask that oil will give. And we will too, because oil pays only
half of public expenditures. The other half is paid by the taxpayers.
Is this what Vielma Mora (the internal revenue chief) gets the funds
for? The tax office shuts down and shuts down businesses, its goal is
cero evasion, asks consumers for their receipts, improves tax
collection and all of that, for what? So that the CNE Directors can
light up their cigars with ten thousand Bs. Bills?
