Drive to recall Chávez stumbles –Article 72 says that was their one shot

Potentially damaging to the opposition is that the ruling appears to exclude from participation in future referendum petitions the nongovernmental organization Súmate, which coordinated the February operation. Súmate has a network of tens of thousands of volunteers throughout the country, ready to assist with a fresh petition. But the electoral council's view is that Súmate ''does not represent civil society'' and cannot therefore play any role. There was no immediate reaction from the organization itself.……………………….

………………………Flores told reporters that Article 72 of the constitution, which establishes the recall referendum, ''makes it clear that there can only be one request'' for such a vote. The government argues that Article 72 says that ''no more than one recall petition can be submitted'' during any given term of office, thus blocking a second petition.

CARACAS - Millions of signatures gathered by the political opposition in support of a recall referendum against Venezuela's controversial leftist President Hugo Chávez are invalid, the country's electoral authority declared Friday.

The decision was greeted with jubilation by hundreds of Chávez supporters outside the National Electoral Council headquarters in downtown Caracas. But the opposition Democratic Coordinator immediately announced that it would gather the signatures again at another mass ''sign-in'' (dubbed the ''Reafirmazo'') on Oct. 5.

The council said it would define the rules for governing the petition process on Wednesday.

The streets of Caracas remained calm Friday night as Chávez supporters celebrated the council's decision. Opposition to Chávez's policies led to a failed coup in April 2002 and a two-month general strike early this year that brought on a severe recession in one of the world's top oil-producing nations.

The United States has backed a referendum as a way to resolve the political crisis.

Nonetheless, some observers doubt that the opposition can overcome the Chávez government's determination to avoid the recall referendum by any means. They note that any decision by the council can be appealed to the constitutional branch of the supreme court, which has a history of favoring the Chávez government. Chávez supporters have promised to take the issue to the supreme court.

The council's decision, announced by its chairman, Francisco Carrasquero, was not unanimous. The two opposition sympathizers on the five-member council, Ezequiel Zamora and Solbella Mejía, disagreed with the arguments.

According to the ruling, the 3.2 million signatures, delivered to the National Electoral Council on Aug. 20, should have been collected after the halfway point of Chávez's presidency, reached on Aug. 19. That's when the recall referendum became possible, according to the 1999 constitution. In fact, the signatures were collected in February.

However, state Gov. Enrique Mendoza, a leading member of the Democratic Coordinator, immediately presented the opposition's timetable for the ``Reafirmazo.'' Calling for ''patience, serenity and resoluteness,'' Mendoza said ''no authority, no government'' could stand in the way of the campaign to cut short Chávez's term. If not recalled, the president is to remain in office until early 2007.

''I really don't believe there will be a referendum,'' said political analyst Alberto Garrido. ``This is going to be an obstacle race.''

The first obstacle, according to Cilia Flores, parliamentary leader of Chávez's Fifth Republic Movement, will be to seek guidance from the supreme court.

Flores told reporters that Article 72 of the constitution, which establishes the recall referendum, ''makes it clear that there can only be one request'' for such a vote.

The government argues that Article 72 says that ''no more than one recall petition can be submitted'' during any given term of office, thus blocking a second petition.

House Votes to Lift Restrictions on Cuba***WASHINGTON - The House defied a threatened presidential veto Tuesday in moving to lift four-decade-old restrictions on travel to Cuba. Lawmakers also voted to lift the caps on money that can be sent to Cuban households. The restriction on visits to Cuba, said Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., is "not only ineffective, it curbs the basic American freedom to travel and to export American ideals and values."

…….Lifting sanctions now, the White House said in a statement, "would provide a helping hand to a desperate and repressive regime at the expense of the Cuban people."

House Majority Leader Tom Delay, R-Texas, opposed the amendment. "Fidel Castro— thief, murderer, and tyrant — is the only Cuban who will benefit from this amendment," he said.

……..Former President Clinton expanded the people-to-people program in January 1999.

Rep. William Delahunt, D-Mass., also won 222-196 approval of an amendment to lift the caps on remittances to families in Cuba. "Dollars from American relatives can make a huge difference in the quality of life for a Cuban family," he said.

Opponents argued that the Castro government siphoned off the money to bolster its repressive and anti-American policies. ***

Hugo Chavez and his mentor Fidel Castro – Cuba

Castro Closes Ranks With Friendly Leaders Mugabe, Chavez *** Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez — who faces his own headaches at home, where last week he announced new plans by opponents to topple him — joined Castro and in a fiery speech criticized leaders of powerful industrialized nations for promising grand solutions yet doing nothing to solve developing nations' grave environmental and financial problems.

"What they have done is absolutely insignificant given the gravity of the problem," Chavez said, blaming globalization and failed neoliberal economic policies. "Neoliberalism has been defeated," Chavez proclaimed to audience applause. "Now we're going to bury it, starting this century."

Chavez and Castro are strong political allies and close friends. Chavez thanked the Cuban leader for technological assistance that he said helped sharply reduce Venezuela's illiteracy rates. Chavez contends that an "oligarchy" bent on ousting a democratically elected leader has sabotaged his efforts to fight for the poor.

The 13 heads of state and government from Africa and the Caribbean attending the U.N. conference also included the presidents of Zimbabwe, Gambia, Burkina Faso, Mali and Namibia and the prime ministers of Lesotho, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Many of the Africa presidents in attendance hail from countries whose independence struggles were aided by Cuba in the 1980s and 1990s.

"Coming to Cuba is to come to a country where there are true friends of Africa," Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe said. Mugabe is the target of widespread international criticism. Zimbabwe was suspended for a year from the decision-making councils of the Commonwealth of Britain and its former terrorities because of concerns about human rights and disputed presidential elections Mugabe narrowly won last year.***

August 18, 2003Citgo mulls relocation to Houston Tulsa, Okla.-based Citgo Petroleum Corp. is considering moving its headquarters -- and 800 to 1,000 jobs -- to Houston. Monica Perin/ Houston Business Journal [Full Text] The mayor of Tulsa, Bill LaFortune, revealed on Aug. 12 that "a major employer" in that city was contemplating moving to Houston.

Citgo, whose parent company, Venezuela's Petroleos de Venezuela SA, is still in turmoil in the wake of a major strike late last year and early this year, issued a statement on Aug. 13 confirming that it is studying the move and expects to reach a decision by year's end.

Pam Lovett, director of economic development for the Greater Houston Partnership, confirmed that her organization is "working with Citgo" but she declined to reveal any details about the negotiations.

Citgo is the world's fifth-largest oil exporter and the fourth-largest gasoline retailer in the United States.

The loss of Citgo would be the second economic blow for Tulsa in just six months. In February, Williams Cos. announced a decision to keep its gas pipeline operations -- and 650 employees -- in Houston after considering a move to Tulsa. (See "Williams unit staying in Houston," Feb. 14, 2003.)

The Tulsa-based energy company had been negotiating with Oklahoma state and Tulsa city officials for an economic incentive package that would have helped subsidize the transition from Houston to Tulsa, but decided against the move.

Houston, too, could use the economic stimulus that would result from an influx of nearly 1,000 jobs.

Although it is not clear where Citgo would set up its headquarters locally, real estate brokers say a large lease by a major energy company such as Citgo would provide the market with a much-needed boost.

"Due to the losses that have occurred due to mergers, we could use some in-migration that would give us positive growth," says downtown broker Stewart Robinson of Conine & Robinson. "I would think they would find some eager employees here."

A new CEO, Luis Marin, took over the reins of Citgo Petroleum Corp. on Aug. 1 and immediately initiated a study on the impact of moving the company's headquarters. The study is part of a "new global vision" by Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, Citgo said in its statement this week.

The global vision includes "consolidating all of PDVSA's international investments into one strategic location in order to take advantage of the economies of scale and to maximize the synergies of various PDVSA investments outside of Venezuela," the statement said.

Citgo to go-go?

PDVSA is Venezuela's national oil company. The company has been struggling to reorganize and resume operations since a nationwide strike last December to oust Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, virtually shut it down.

The company fired some 18,000 employees as a result of the strike and has been struggling since. Its oil production is still not back to pre-strike levels.

In addition to Citgo, PDVSA's foreign investments include PDV Services Inc., a procurement affiliate with offices in Houston; a refining joint venture with ExxonMobil in Chalmette, La.; and a joint venture with ConocoPhillips in Sweeney.

On Aug. 13, the British Financial Times reported that PDVSA's internal struggle for control continues, with Chavez determined to tighten his grip on the company. The publication said reports surfaced this week that Chavez plans to install a close ally and former army captain at the head of the company.

PDVSA's Citgo owns or operates refineries in Texas, Louisiana and Illinois, including facilities in Corpus Christi, Houston and Lake Charles, La. In Houston, the company owns a 42 percent interest in a Lyondell-Citgo refinery.

Citgo also operates a bulk loading terminal in North Houston and two pipeline companies.

The company's refineries produce 140 million barrels of gasoline, 55 million barrels of distillates and 30 million barrels of jet fuel a year. Citgo markets gasoline through 13,400 U.S. outlets and has 4,300 employees worldwide.

Its new CEO, Marin, had been a director of Petroleos de Venezuela SA and head of PDVSA's eastern division before his appointment to Citgo. A 1980 graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Marin relocated to Tulsa in July from Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela.

Ta-ta to Tulsa?

Tulsa mayor LaFortune and Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry said this week that they intend to "do whatever we can to retain Citgo." But Henry said he was concerned the state might not be able to offer anything attractive enough to PDVSA to keep Citgo in Oklahoma.

Citgo has about 1,000 employees in Tulsa, where it has been based since 1983 when it was spun off from the former Cities Service Co. by Occidental Petroleum.

The company last week rescheduled its quarterly investor conference call from Aug. 11 to Aug. 19.

Also last week, credit rating agency FitchRatings upgraded its rating of Citgo and withdrew its ratings of Citgo's direct parent company, PDV America.

The agency said the rating action recognizes continued improvement in Citgo's liquidity position since the end of Venezuela's strike and the company's strong operating performance over the last several months, but also reflects the potential for further interference from PDVSA.

Citgo produced $500 million in profits for PDVSA in 2002 and the first half of 2003.

But Citgo, along with every other U.S. refiner, faces enormous capital expenditures to meet new environmental requirements for low sulfur fuels. Industry experts put the total cost at $15 billion to $20 billion and predict that some refineries will be shut down.

Citgo has estimated its costs will be $1.3 billion over the next five years.

Despite those challenges, Marin said last week that Citgo plans to increase its heavy crude refining capacity and to buy more Venezuelan heavy crude.

The company has been upgrading its refineries in Lake Charles and Corpus Christi for that purpose, although the Venezuelan strike severely reduced Citgo's incoming oil shipments.

mperin@bizjournals.com -- 713-960-5910 Reporter Nancy Sarnoff contributed to this story.

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