during a Constituent Assembly session. Prior to assembling at the
Federal Legislative Palace, members of the National Constituent Assembly carried large portraits of
Hugo Chávez and
Simón Bolívar, placing them in the palace to show support for the Bolivarian government. Assembly President
Delcy Rodríguez also declared that the new assembly would commence work on 5 August 2017.
Removal of government opposition The Assembly voted on its first day of work to remove the nation's Chief Prosecutor
Luisa Ortega Díaz and named
Tarek William Saab as her replacement. On 8 August 2017, the Constituent Assembly declared itself to be the government branch with supreme power in Venezuela, banning the opposition-led
National Assembly from performing actions that would interfere with the assembly while continuing to pass measures in "support and solidarity" with President Maduro. Tarek William Saab, the Chief Prosecutor appointed by the Constituent Assembly, announced on 16 August 2017 that former Chief Prosecutor Luisa Ortega Díaz and her husband, German Ferrer, operated an extortion group and a day later, the Constituent Assembly ordered for their arrest with the couple fleeing to Colombia. Ortega and Ferrer fled from Venezuela by speedboat to
Aruba and flew into Colombia, with Ortega stating that the Bolivarian government would "deprive me of my life". On 18 August 2017, the Assembly gave itself the power to pass legislation and override the National Assembly on issues concerning "preservation of peace, security, sovereignty, the socio-economic and financial system" On 11 October 2017, days before the
Venezuela's regional elections, President Maduro stated that governors elected will only remain in power if they are subordinate to the ANC, telling voters that "everyone who votes ... recognizes the power of the Constituent National Assembly, because it is what convenes and organizes (the election)".
Truth, Justice and Reparations Commission President Maduro announced on 6 August that the Assembly had created a
Truth, Justice and Reparations Commission to investigate the
protests, with Delcy Rodríguez presiding over the commission. The panel was set up on 16 August 2017. Rodríguez stated that opposition candidates of the
October gubernatorial elections would be investigated to make sure they were not involved in violent protests. About 268 people had been arrested as political prisoners by the Maduro government by December 2017, according to a non-governmental organisation. Delcy Rodríguez, head of the commission investigating the protests, announced the release of 80 prisoners around the time of Christmas.
2018 presidential elections The Constituent Assembly barred three of the most influential opposition parties –
Justice First,
Democratic Action and
Popular Will; from participating in the
2018 Presidential Elections. It ruled that the parties who boycotted
local elections in December 2017, had lost legitimacy, requiring them to reapply for legal status and potentially barring them from the presidential elections.
Stripping of Guaido's parliamentary immunity The EU condemned the Constituent Assembly stripping of
Juan Guaidó's parliamentary immunity, calling the action a "serious violation of the Venezuelan constitution, as well as of the rule of law and separation of power". ==Public opinion==