TEHRAN, Apr 02 - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro replaced his electricity minister on Monday in a move to address a series of blackouts plaguing the country, while opposition leader Juan Guaido called on supporters to continue taking to the streets.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - In an address on state television, Maduro said he named Igor Gavidia, a 65-year-old electrical engineer who was previously president of state power generator Electrificacion del Caroni, to replace Electricity Minister Luis Motta.
The change came as Maduro reiterated plans for a 30-day "load administration" plan, which he first mentioned last week and which Venezuelans widely assume will be a way to ration electricity.
"Some changes are needed to strengthen, take responsibility for, and develop the new phase of this plan," Maduro said.
Oil-rich Venezuela was rocked by a debilitating blackout on March 7, which dragged on for nearly a week in some parts of the country. Power has been intermittent since another blackout on March 25, and growing water shortages have aggravated the sense of crisis in a country where food and medicine are already scarce with an economy racked by hyperinflation.
Demonstrators took to the streets throughout Caracas on Sunday and Monday, with small groups of people blocking roads to demand water. On Sunday night, police fired gunshots after some residents in Caracas set up burning barricades, according to Reuters witnesses.
Source: Reuters
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