“I promise that bitcoin will be in Venezuela’s reserves”

Daniel Ceballos, the youngest candidate among those seeking to win the presidency of Venezuela next July, is convinced that bitcoin (BTC) and its technology can help fix Venezuela’s economy.

The 40-year-old politician told in an interview with CriptoNoticias how it was that was captivated by Bitcoin White Paper when it accidentally fell into his hands while he was imprisoned in the Helicoide.

Ceballos was suspended and dismissed as mayor of San Cristóbal (capital of the Táchira state) by the Supreme Court of Justice of Venezuela. The order was issued by the Public Ministry and he was accused of promoting violence in the context of the protests that took place in the South American country in 2014.

During the first half of that year, tens of thousands of people took to the streets (more than 6,300 demonstrations) in repudiation of crime, the high level of inflation and the shortage of basic products.

An investigation carried out by the organization Human Rights Watch found evidence of “unlawful use of force, including shooting and brutally beating unarmed people.” There were also cases that “clearly constituted torture.”

Now, with more than two decades of protests behind us, “There is a lot to fix in Venezuela”, says Ceballos, nominated in the race to win the presidency for the Assembly of Renewal and Hope for the Country (Arepa) party. This is a middle way, as he calls it.

With this he refers to a political alternative far from what he considers to be the “two sectors of the political polarization” of the country. On the one hand, the current ruler Nicolás Maduro, who is “responsible for the crisis that all Venezuelans are experiencing,” and the majority opposition that “benefits from bad government” and contributes to deepening the crisis.

Choosing one of the two paths, continuity of a government that has already been in power for 25 years or an opposition that takes advantage of it, “does not represent any possibility of change for the reality that exists in Venezuela,” says Ceballos.

Freedom, Respect for property and democracy

«After 25 years of conflict in Venezuela, I assume my candidacy as one of my greatest challenges and priorities, integrating into it a mechanism of independence for the people. It is a tool that most Venezuelans do not know and that in my role in my position I know that I am making a contribution so that many people find that, independence, the possibility of participating and democratizing by knowing the Web3 that gives us the opportunity to lead a true independence movement.

Daniel Ceballos, candidate for the presidency of Venezuela.

The Andean politician presented last week a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) which he called Metademocracy. It also launched the Mi Arepa digital wallet and its arepita token.

As defined by the CriptoNoticias glossary, a DAO is “a type of organization or digital ‘company’ that works based on a system of rules previously codified through smart contracts or a blockchain.”

In itself, Ceballos’ proposal is based on “empowering Venezuelans” by allowing them to now have control over everything that was taken from them in the past.

“And this is how the idea of ​​creating the first political party that works with Web3 and blockchains in Venezuela was born. It is called Arepa because it represents something that belongs to all of us, such as this traditional food. We did it this way as we do not want to get into the dispute of polarization that is there all the time, but rather what we seek is the true transformation of the country.”

Daniel Ceballos, candidate for the presidency of Venezuela.

Although he understands that talking about Web3, DAO or bitcoin is introducing Venezuelans to a new language because they are new concepts, he insists that his proposal offers people real citizen participation. He assures that it is a transparent political and state model that facilitates the participation of all citizens, grants financial freedom and respect for property.

Bitcoin, should be the currency of all Venezuelans

“The country has not realized that with the Arepa party we are putting blockchains on the Venezuelan electoral card. We do not go into the technical details, but we are trying to show the Venezuelan that if they save in bitcoin, that if they adopt bitcoin as their currency, they will have the possibility of avoiding inflation. You will also have the possibility of saving because due to the devaluation of the bolivar that is something really complicated to do.”

Daniel Ceballos, candidate for the presidency of Venezuela.

He is convinced that bitcoin offers a whole field of possibilities to drive the future of Venezuela. In fact, he applauds the bitcoin policy that President Nayib Bukele is implementing in El Salvador and promises to replicate some of it if he wins the presidency.

“We, as a political party, are educating and promoting the use of bitcoin. That is why I promise that bitcoin will be in Venezuela’s reserves. Although this would not be an executive decision, rather we will take this proposal to public consultation so that everyone in the country participates and decides on what they believe is appropriate. But in reality I do believe that bitcoin can help solve many of the problems that exist in the country, as is the case of the financial aspect, as well as politically.

Daniel Ceballos, candidate for the presidency of Venezuela.

However, talking about cryptocurrencies or Bitcoin currently in Venezuela has taken on a different connotation to what the past used to be. Before it seemed to be a topic that was mentioned more and more on the Venezuelan streets, but for more than a year it has been associated more with corruption due to the PDVSA-crypto case, the one with the greatest impact at the government level in the world of cryptocurrencies.

There is also the case of the Petro, the central bank digital currency (CBDC) that was declared extinct earlier this year and did so without playing a major role in a possible recovery of the country’s economy.

Referring to these cases, Ceballos says that he wants to distance himself from the government movements that have left a painful mark on Venezuelans.

«We want the mi arepa token to be the Venezuelan bitcoin. We want each citizen to have dominion and ownership over their own finances. May he have financial freedom and everything that entails. Let them have a voice and vote when it comes to participating because what we have, the wealth that the country has for its resources, we cannot take advantage of and that is because we are fighting and divided. So what I come to offer is a tool that offers us the possibility of moving forward under a collaborative model.

Daniel Ceballos, candidate for the presidency of Venezuela.

A bank with bitcoin and multiple solutions, like Swiss knives

For Daniel Ceballos, the arepa digital wallet is a kind of “Swiss bank” designed for Venezuela. He calls it that because he equates it with a Swiss army knife that includes a whole variety of tools and that for more than a century has earned the status of an iconic symbol of versatility and resistance.

That is what he wants his governance proposal for Venezuela to become, a tool in which he will be able to exercise his right to participate under conditions of equality, respecting the concept of democracy. To participate, citizens could have access to the DAO, which is the Metademocracy system, and at the same time, in their digital wallet. they would have bitcoin for sending and receiving remittances at low cost, that same crypto asset to combat inflation.

“At no time are we going to guard people’s funds. What we want with the Mi Arepa digital wallet the arepita token is for people to participate and also receive incentives for some work they do. That you also have it at your fingertips to receive remittances and that you can protect yourself from inflation and devaluation of the bolivar.”

Daniel Ceballos, candidate for the presidency of Venezuela.