Introduction
The recent history of Venezuela is marked by opposition leaders who have altered their speeches and loyalties, adapting to the power landscape while millions suffer the consequences. Beyond headlines and cameras, these leaders travel and present themselves abroad as voices of truth, but in reality, they safeguard personal interests, waiting for political change from the shadows (La Gran Aldea, 2025).
Behaviors of Functional Opposition
The average citizen witnesses how figures like Henrique Capriles once denounced the narco-government and today cast doubt on the Cartel of the Suns, ignoring files and international convictions. This metamorphosis responds to the logic of self-preservation, where political survival precedes the public defense of citizens' interests (Vanguardia, 2025; TikTok, 2025).
Family Networks and Shadow Businesses
From privileged positions, figures like Eduardo Capriles Gonzalo (Henrique's cousin) have worked alongside the DGCIM and Alexander Granko Arteaga, evidencing how personal interests are entrenched in the state's repressive structure (Monitoreamos, 2025; La Patilla, 2025).
Opportunism, corruption, and betrayal: What each has done
Henrique Capriles Radonski
• Made a pact with chavismo to endorse legislative elections and fragmented opposition unity, breaking joint strategies. Changed from denouncing the narco-government in 2013 to demanding evidence of the existence of the Cartel of the Suns in 2025 (Infobae, 2025; BBC Mundo, 2025; Diario Las Americas, 2025).
Julio Borges
• Led negotiations with agents linked to oil corruption networks and was investigated for the irregular management of companies like Monómeros and Citgo (El País, 2024; NTN24, 2024).
Stalin González
• Participated with Capriles in electoral processes promoted by Maduro, weakening the confrontation strategy and betting on political pacts (New York Times, 2020).
Henry Ramos Allup (Ramón Allup)
• Swore in governors before Maduro's Constituent Assembly, legitimizing fraudulent instances. Practiced political pragmatism and negotiated behind the scenes, prioritizing his party's space over democratic values (El Nacional, 2017; BBC Mundo, 2016).
José Brito
• Participated in Operation Alacrán, accepting resources and favors from the government to divide the AN, and has requested the judicial annulment of internal democratic opposition processes (La Gran Aldea, 2023; TalCual Digital, 2021).
Luis Parra
• Leader of Operation Alacrán, received payments to seize the parliamentary presidency and engage in the game of government interests, participating in corruption schemes with the CLAP (El Pitazo, 2019).
Tomás Guanipa
• He was pointed out for seeking personal interests and disputing privileges in the Interim Government, with controversial episodes regarding the handling of opposition resources and funds abroad (Dailymotion, 2023).
Leopoldo López
• Maintained conversations and agreements with businessmen linked to the regime, featured in investigations regarding the irregular management of international funds and ambiguous alliances (NTN24, 2024; Elpais.cr, 2025).
Carlos Vecchio
• He has been accused of opacity and diversion of Citgo funds and for negotiating conditions that benefit his surroundings over the interests of the citizenry (Elpais.cr, 2025).
Juan Guaidó
• Allowed negligence and internal controversies under his interim administration concerning key companies like Monómeros, losing popular support due to ruptures and divisions in his leadership (New York Times, 2020).
Schematic Deceit and Citizen Suffering
Many of these leaders travel the world as supposed advocates of the Venezuelan people, while at home they ignore national pain and negotiate "in the shadows" for shares of power (La Gran Aldea, 2025; Vanguardia, 2025).
Conclusion
The reality of the country, of those who live and fight day by day in Venezuela, cannot be reduced to accounts of files or formal balances. What hurts, above all, is to see how the trust of a battered people has been used as a bargaining chip, first by those who promised a different future and then by those who, from the heights of power, turned the state into a refuge for criminality.
The case of politicians who presented themselves as saviors and ended up negotiating their dignity for privileges is a dagger for those who resist in the streets, migrate out of necessity, or survive abuses. Every act of betrayal has a face: parents who cannot feed their children, grandparents who die waiting for medicines, and young people forced to flee, while the usual leaders travel, negotiate, and reinvent themselves in the periphery of the elites.
Beyond the lists and international investigations, the damage is deep and personal. It is the feeling of abandonment when those who were to confront the regime prefer a comfortable silence, a seat at the next negotiation, or the disguise of “functional opposition” to wait their turn in the distribution. It is also the rage of knowing that while discussions occur in forums or new sanctions are announced, the true culprits of the disaster remain protected by the same networks of complicity.
If there is a lesson in all this, it is that the future cannot be built with the same old pacts or with double-faced actors. Venezuela deserves something different: real honesty, coherence between what is said and what is done, and leadership willing to risk everything for those who have lost almost everything. It is not just politics; it is, above all, a demand for decency, justice, and memory.
References
• La Gran Aldea. (2025). The Traitors of the Venezuelan Nation. https://lga.lagranaldea.com/2025/04/24/los-traidores-de-la-nacion-venezolana/
• Monitoreamos. (2025). Eduardo Capriles Gonzalo, cousin of Henrique Capriles,was seen with Maduro and DGCIM torturers. https://monitoreamos.com/venezuela/eduardo-capriles-gonzalo-primo-de-henrique-capriles-se-mostro-junto-a-maduro-y-torturadores-de-la-dgcim
• La Patilla. (2025). Eduardo Capriles: from frontman of Nicolás Maduro's plane to commissioner of Alexander Granko in the DGCIM. https://lapatilla.com/2025/08/30/eduardo-capriles-de-testaferro-del-avion-de-nicolas-maduro-a-comisario-de-alexander-granko-en-el-dgcim/
• Vanguardia. (2025). Capriles generates controversy by questioning the Cartel of the Suns and defending Maduro. https://www.vanguardia.com/mundo/2025/08/29/polemica-de-henrique-capriles-de-denunciar-narcoestado-a-poner-en-duda-el-cartel-de-los-soles/
• TikTok (@espolitiks). (2025). Does Capriles demand proof about the Cartel of the Suns? In 2013 he himself claimed that "there is a cartel at the front of the government." https://www.tiktok.com/@espolitiks/video/7544021887760796933
• Infobae. (2025). Henrique Capriles was expelled from the Primero Justicia party for supporting the legislative elections convened by Maduro. https://www.infobae.com/venezuela/2025/04/15/henrique-capriles-fue-expulsado-del-partido-primero-justicia-por-respaldar-las-elecciones-legislativas-convocadas-por-maduro/
• BBC Mundo. (2025). Henrique Capriles: "Most of the people who want ...". https://www.bbc.com/mundo/articles/cev2wdp42jmo
• Diario Las Americas. (2025). Former Ecuadorian deputy asserts: Henrique Capriles is more despicable than Maduro. https://www.diariolasamericas.com/america-latina/exdiputado-ecuatoriano-afirma-henrique-capriles-es-mas-despreciable-que-maduro-n5381484
• El País. (2024). The "traitors" who spoke in Nicolás Maduro's ear. https://elpais.com/america/2024-05-05/los-traidores-que-hablaban-al-oido-de-nicolas-maduro.html
• NTN24. (2024). Maduro's regime requests the extradition of Julio Borges and Leopoldo López after revealing the confession of El Aissami's associate. https://www.ntn24.com/noticias-judicial/regimen-de-maduro-solicita-la-extradicion-de-julio-borges-y-leopoldo-lopez-tras-ventilar-confesion-del-socio-de-el-aissami-488011
• New York Times. (2020). To Run or Boycott? The Venezuelan Opposition, Divided Over the ... . https://www.nytimes.com/es/2020/09/07/espanol/america-latina/venezuela-oposicion.html
• El Nacional. (2017). Ramos Allup: "We have not betrayed the opposition". https://www.elnacional.com/2017/10/ramos-allup-hemos-traicionado-oposicion_209097/
• BBC Mundo. (2016). Who is Henry Ramos Allup, the “old guard” opponent who will preside over the National Assembly. https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias/2016/01/160104_venezuela_oposicion_quien_es_henry_ramos_allup_presidente_asamblea_nacional_lv
• La Gran Aldea. (2023). José Brito: story of betrayals of a “Scorpion” who came from El Tigre. https://lga.lagranaldea.com/2023/11/01/jose-brito-historia-de-traiciones-de-un-alacran-que-salio-de-el-tigre/
• TalCual Digital. (2021). José Brito follows the script of chavismo and accuses Guaidó of treason to the homeland. https://talcualdigital.com/jose-brito-sigue-el-libreto-del-chavismo-y-acusa-a-guaido-de-traicion-a-la-patria/
• El Pitazo. (2019). KEYS | Luis Parra: the hinge in the mechanism of betrayal to Guaidó. https://elpitazo.net/politica/claves-luis-parra-la-bisagra-en-el-mecanismo-de-traicion-a-guaido/ • Dailymotion. (2023). Tomás Guanipa and his failed interests within the interim government. https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8hinqc
• Elpais.cr. (2025). USAID and the Venezuelan opposition in the eye of the hurricane. https://www.elpais.cr/2025/02/24/la-usaid-y-la-oposicion-venezolana-en-el-ojo-del-huracan/
About the Author:
William L. Acosta graduated from PWU and the Alliance University. He is a retired police officer from the New York Police Department, a former military of the United States Army, and the founder and CEO of Equalizer Private Investigations & Security Services Inc., a licensed agency in New York and Florida, with international outreach.
Since 1999, he has led investigations into narcotics cases, homicides, and missing persons, as well as participating in criminal defense at both the state and federal levels. A specialist in international and multijurisdictional cases, he has coordinated operations in North America, Europe, and Latin America.
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