Pray the future which gifted minds will prioritize is that of Venezuela, and not just that of the gifted minds, like Cisneros’.

Sir, Gustavo Cisneros holds that “Vatican diplomacy could be Venezuela’s salvation”, March 21. I wonder how much diplomacy he believes is needed to overcome Venezuela’s original economic sin, namely that all oil revenues flow directly to the government coffers. As is, that income currently signifies around 98 % of all the nation’s exports.

Had oil revenues been shared out directly to the Venezuelan citizens and so that the government worked for them and not the other way round, then Cisneros would also perhaps have seen no reason to enter into a cozy relation with the government which has so discredited him with one half of Venezuela. And then Cisneros might not have been in need to prepare these just in case the wind abruptly changes mass marketed editorials.

“Gifted minds that prioritize the future will build consensus”. Indeed but let the Vatican and all of us pray that the prioritized future refers to Venezuela’s, and not just to that of the gifted minds.

http://theoilcurse.blogspot.com/

http://petropolitan.blogspot.com/

Britain, if you had oil revenue power concentrated like in Venezuela, yours could be even more of a ‘malandro’, a hoodlum, nation.

Sir, I refer to 99.99% of what is currently written about Venezuela, like yours “Venezuela: the ‘malandro’ nation” March 5.

If you’d only taken time to really set yourself into the challenges of a country where over 98 percent of all its exports go into government coffers, you would not be writing about a “Hugo Chávez legacy” or the charmlessness of his successor, Nicolas Maduro.

You would probably be writing about the fact that no one, no matter how good intentions he has, no matter how charming he is, no matter how brilliant he might be, should, in the company of some few petrocrats and oilygarchs, have the right to wield such extraordinary powers.

And Andres Schipani titles his report “Venezuela´s poor wait for the revolution to deliver”, which only helps to promote the illusion of something waiting for them at the end of the rainbow. A much better title would be “Venezuela´s ever growing poor keep standing in the wrong line”

No Sir, let me assure you that if your Britain was set up as my Venezuela is, yours might be a much more ´malandro’ nation than mine… suffice to see what happened when some of your kings wielded too much power… and heads rolled!

G8, by championing the Extractive Industries Transparency Directive, might be selling snake-oil-illusions

Sir, I refer to Vanessa Houlder’s note “Extractive Industries” June 11, where she writes about Cameron urging his G8 partners to champion the Extractive Industries Transparency Directive, June 11.

I certainly appreciate the efforts of the initiative but, as an oil-cursed citizen of a country like Venezuela, where over 97 percent of all the nations exports go directly into government coffers, I cannot but feel that selling the idea that that kind of transparency could solve our oil curse problems, is like selling snake-oil-illusions, something which can only help the ruler and his petrocrats.

Let me ask you, if the UK was in a similar position, would you settle for more transparency, or would you directly go for wrestling that excessive natural resource power out of your ruler’s hand?

By the way, in 2003 you published a letter in which I held that all European taxmen were, by means of gasoline/petrol taxes getting more revenues per barrel of oil than any country who gives up that non-renewable resource forever. And, since that is still true, even at current oil prices, I ask again why does not EITI’s call for transparency cover that?

What a great letter!

Sir, I am not at all sure I grasped the whole meaning of Simon Schama’s “A letter from America to beatific Olympic Britain”, August 11, but, intuitively, I know that I love it… and that is not only because I find the concept of “democracy has become the catspaw of plutocrats” to be so right on the dot.

When democracy dies in the cradle

Sir, Arvind Subramanian is absolutely correct arguing that democratic forces stand no chance against the economic rents of a State, “Arab spring will not see an economic bloom”, February 22.

As an oil-cursed citizen (Venezuela) and therefore an expert on the issue let me assure you that societies where citizens are not paying directly for most of their government expenses, and are mostly positioned as receivers of government favors, there is absolutely no chance to develop a functional democracy. The most one can do is to hope for an illuminated oil-dictator, in the sad certainty that sooner or later one will have to suffer a truly dysfunctional one.

If for instance in Iraq oil revenues were shared out directly in cash to citizens the political dynamics there would have been different, and real democracy could have had a chance to be empowered. As is they are just waiting for the next petro-autocrat, and who could then perhaps even count on an oil production that doubles the highest under Sadam Hussein´s regime.

By the way even taxes can produce a tax-curse, if these are not transparent enough. Currently the UK taxman perceives through taxes on petrol consumption more per barrel of oil than those who give up that non-renewable for ever… and few UK motorists are really aware of how much they pay in these taxes.

EITI, unwittingly, is an obstacle to other cursed-citizen's requests.

Sir I refer to your Oily transparency April 15. In the debate on what to do with an oil curse the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiatives occupies so much space it does not leave much room for others who like me want the oil revenues distributed directly to the citizens.

In fact EITI is more of an obstacle since it states as its 2nd Principle“We affirm that management of natural resource wealth for the benefit of a country’s citizens is in the domain of sovereign governments to be exercised in the interests of their national development.”

When seeing how much oil-richness has been wasted in the hands of oiligarchs, petrocrats or plain thugs it is truly amazing such a principle should exist. I guess it is because it is always more fun to talk to an oil blessed politician or technocrat than with a poor oil cursed citizens.

http://theoilcurse.blogspot.com/