Early Friday morning, a widespread blackout plunged most of Venezuela into darkness, an event Communications Minister Freddy Ñáñez attributed to “sabotage” of the national electrical grid.
Venezuela frequently experiences power outages, which President Nicolás Maduro’s administration often blames on alleged conspiracies aimed at overthrowing his government.
“At approximately 4:40 am today, Friday, August 30, an electrical sabotage occurred in Venezuela, affecting almost the entire national territory,” Ñáñez announced on state-run VTV.
He reported that all 24 states experienced total or partial loss of electricity.
Venezuela’s worst nationwide blackout occurred in March 2019, lasting several days. Regions like Táchira and Zulia, once hubs of the oil industry, endure daily power cuts.
The government often points fingers at the United States and opposition groups for these power failures.
However, opposition leaders and experts argue that corruption, lack of investment, and inadequate expertise are the real causes behind the ongoing outages.
Ñáñez described the blackout as a “new electrical sabotage” and emphasized the government’s use of “anti-coup protocols” in response to the incident.
He linked the blackout to the disputed July 28 election, in which Maduro was declared the winner.
However, the opposition claims its candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia, won by a landslide, presenting polling data to support their assertion.
González Urrutia was scheduled to appear before prosecutors on Friday after being accused of “usurpation of functions” and “forgery” related to the release of election data.
It remains unclear whether these proceedings will continue after the blackout.
The government has accused González Urrutia and opposition leader María Corina Machado of inciting post-election protests and violence, which have resulted in at least 27 deaths, including two military personnel, and nearly 200 injuries, with over 2,400 arrests.
