Alex Saab, new Minister of Industry and National Production

Nicolás Maduro announced this Friday, October 18, that appointed the businessman of Colombian origin Alex Saab as the new Minister of Industries and National Production.

«I appointed Alex Saab as the new Minister of Popular Power for Industry and National Production, I am sure that with his great management capacity and commitment to our people, he will promote the development of the entire industrial system of Venezuela within the framework of the construction process. of the new economic model. All the support for the immense task that he has to accomplish,” Maduro indicated on his Instagram account.

As minister, Saab will be in charge of more than a hundred companies and institutions, among which the Venezuelan Corporation of Guayana stands out, marred since 2023 by a corruption scandal for which former Oil Minister Tareck el Aissami was arrested.

Saab so far He served as president of the International Center for Productive Investmentwhile the Ministry of Industry and National Production was headed by the former president of PDVSA Pedro Rafael Tellechea.

Pedro Tellechea resigns from his position as minister

Tellechea announced this Friday that he resigned from his position as minister due to “health problems that require immediate attention.”

“I want to express my most sincere gratitude for the opportunity they gave me to be part of the government’s combatant team, which has left me with an enriching and unparalleled experience,” he expressed through his social networks.

He explained that “after careful personal consideration and together with my family group, I have made the difficult decision to resign from my responsibilities within this organization, motivated by health problems that require my immediate attention.”

Alex Saab’s time in prison

Alex Saab was imprisoned for two years between Cape Verde and the United Statesafter being indicted by the Department of Justice on charges of alleged money laundering.

On December 20, 2023, the United States released Saab, the alleged figurehead of the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, in exchange for the release of several Venezuelans and Americans detained in the South American country.

At that moment he landed on a plane to Maiquetía accompanied by the president of the Chavista-majority Parliament, Jorge Rodríguez. When he got off the aircraft, he was met by the first lady and deputy to the National Assembly Cilia Flores, who took him to the headquarters of the Miraflores Palace where Maduro received him with hugs and effusiveness.