President Maduro: 2017 Marked a Consolidation of Social Programs

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro presented Monday the state of nation's address to the country's National Constituent Assembly in Caracas, praising the "bravery" of Venezuelan people amidst the assaults of the conservative forces against the nation.

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Public expenditure in social programs increased to 74 percent in total, while the country's unemployment rate dropped by six points and formal employment reached 60 percent of the active population. 

"2017 was the miraculous year of the Constituent power and the victory of peace over violence," he recalled. "Peace won over those who hate, over those who are violent and the far-right, those who want to tear up the country. A year also of social advances, of consolidation and advances in some areas ... It was the year of the CLAP, the local food committees," he continued.

He congratulated the former minister of Housing —now president of PDVSA— for building 1,900,000 homes. When the housing mission was launched by Chavez, the first objective was 2,000,000 homes by 2018 and 3 million by 2019.

"I will have the honor of handing over the 2 millionths home and hitting the deadline set by him," announced Maduro.

He also highlighted the implementation of the national card as "a key element for 2017," as the card provides a better access to social rights, including bonuses, now benefitting to 200,000 new pensioners as in December.

"We have reached a number of over 90% of pensioners 93.1% and by the first quarter we will reach 100% of pensioners incorporated through the Carnet de la Patria," he said.

He also recalled the first state of the nation addresses of his administration, celebrated the peaceful dialogue reached over 2017 but condemning the violent sectors of the opposition.

"In 2014 and 2015, I presented the state of the nation before the National Assembly, where a Chavez majority remained and was in charge of the services of the country," Maduro remembered.

In 2016, the state of the nation was addressed to the opposition, "as a result of an aggressive and damaging economic war waged by the oligarchy against our people," he continued. "We suffered a setback, a complicated one, a dangerous one and a painful one."

The President recalled that the Bolivarian government won 22 elections out of 24 by the popular vote.

However, he respected the democratic vote: "The first thing I did on January 15, 2016, when I presented myself here was to greet with respect the authorities of that National Assembly."

He criticized the achievements of the National Assembly, calling it "the biggest failure we’ve seen in 200 years" and enumerated "the illegalities, the unconstitutional acts, the mistakes and the abuses by the bourgeois National Assembly" that "put them outside of the law and outside of the constitution and the supreme court."

As a result, Maduro presented his 2017 address to the nation before the plenary of the supreme court.

As part of the enouncements by Maduro are those granting teachers their request for bonuses, economic resources for uniforms and medical treatments.