Carlos Luis Revete - El Koki

Carlos Luis Revete

For the 300,000 residents of Cota 905, a collection of houses by a freeway in the centre of Caracas, the most powerful man in Venezuela is not President Maduro. It is “El Koki”, 43, a gang leader. Since 2015 he has turned the slum into his private fiefdom, complete with a 200 man army.

El Koki gunmen had been battling Venezuelan security forces since his takeover of the neighboring La Vega district in late 2020. Most recently cops have invaded Cota 905, putting El Koki on the run while pitched gun battles rage between police and a collection of gangs. Warfare on the streets is a sure sign President Nicolas Maduro is losing control of the country.

Operations of Colombian narcotrafficking groups in Venezuelan territory is well known. The Clan del Golfo, Los Pelusos, Meta Block, and Libertadores del Vichada Block control large swaths of Venezuelan territory, not the dictatorship.

Venezuela says it will make a million-to-1 change in its currency, eliminating six zeros from prices in the local currency as hyperinflation plagues the country. The new 100 bolivar bill will be the highest denomination. It is equivalent to 100,000,000 of the current bolivar. This is the third adjustment since socialist leaders began governing Venezuela. Venezuela is in its sixth year of recession.