₦airaland Forum

Venezuela is running out of just about everything. Food, medicine, electricity, toilet paper, condoms -- you name it.

And over the weekend at least two large international airlines -- Lufthansa and LATAM -- said they will suspend service to Venezuela in the coming months due to the economic crisis.

The widespread scarcities and fleeing businesses reflect a country in crisis.


"There's a shortage of everything at some level," says Ricardo Cusanno, vice president of Venezuela's Chamber of Commerce. Cusanno says 85% of companies in Venezuela have halted production to some extent.

Venezuela's economy is spiraling into extreme recession. It is ironic given that the country sits on the world's largest proven oil reserves of oil. However Venezuela hasn't cut back from expensive government spending even as oil prices have lost half its value in the past two years.

An oppostion-led Congress is pushing for the ouster of President Nicolas Maduro and people have joined rallies and protests calling for his removal.

The country is under the spell of a drought, it's battling the Zika virus and people are struggling to get medicine inequipment-scarce hospitals.

Here's a rundown on Venezuela's crisis and how it's affecting daily life there:

Toilet paper problem


Toiletries are running in short supply across the country. Many Venezuelans say that people wait in lines for several hours to buy basic toiletries, only to sell them at much higher prices on the black market.

Bloomberg reported last year that Trinidad & Tobago had offered to exchange tissue paper for oil with Venezuela. It's unclear if the deal ever came through.

Condoms and birth control are hard to find, Venezuelans say. You won't have any more luck with toothpaste, soap, toilet paper or shampoo. And Maduro has asked women to stop using blow dryers.

Glenda Bolivar lives in Caracas. Blow drying her hair at her favorite salon had been a daily tradition but she recently had to stop.

"Pretty soon, we will only be able to use candles like the old times," Bolivar told CNN in late April.

Food: Butter, bread and sugar shortage


Venezuela's government, running low on revenues and reserves, can't pay for sufficient amounts of imports for basic items like milk, butter, eggs and flour.

The government has also significantly decreased sugar production due to government price controls and inability to pay for imported fertilizer.

On Monday, Coca-Cola announced that it had halted production of Coke and other sweetened beverages due to the sugar shortage.

Alejandro, a 23-year-old resident of Maracaibo, has learned to live without butter for a month. For a few weeks, he and his parents also learned to live without bread. They had arepas, a flour-based food, instead.

On the unofficial exchange rate -- which many Venezuelans use -- Alejandro makes $57 a month working at a law firm during the day and teaching at night. Sometimes, Alejandro pays $2 for a case of butter -- or 4% of his monthly income -- on the black market so he doesn't have to wait in line for several hours.

Despite his struggles, Alejandro says he's among the fortunate in Venezuela.

"Everything here is just awful," says Alejandro (CNNMoney chose to withhold his last name). "There isn't one thing going right in Venezuela right now."

Rolling blackouts in Venezuela

Venezuelans now have rolling blackouts. The country's main source of energy, El Guri dam, is at record low water levels.

To save energy, Maduro has instituted rolling blackouts in cities across Venezuela for at least April and May. He also cut the work week to two days for government employees.

When Alejandro teaches his night class, he uses the flashlight on his cell phone so the students don't have to be sitting in the dark if there's a power cut. Maracaibo has lost electricity for 3 hours a day in May.

A health care crisis

Venezuela lacks roughly 80% of the basic medical supplies needed to treat its population, according to the Pharmaceutical Federation of Venezuela. People are dying in hospitals for lack of sufficient medicines and equipment.

Jose Luis Vazquez experienced the nightmare firsthand. He had just survived a gunshot wound to the chest in a robbery attempt and doctors said all he needed was minor surgery.

But he was still in the hospital days later and he had to pay for all the supplies -- gauges, syringes, peroxide and more.

"There was nothing in this hospital," Vazquez told CNN earlier in May in a hospital in Valencia, a city about 100 miles from the capital.

Shipping gold, low on cash

Venezuela's government has been running out of foreign reserves andliterally shipping gold to help pay for its debt. Venezuela only has $12.1 billion in foreign reserves as of March, according to the most recent central bank figures.

That's down by half from a year ago. In order to get cash loans to pay for its debt, Venezuela has shipped $2.3 billion of gold to Switzerland so far this year as collateral, according to Swiss government import data.

Experts believe Venezuela will likely default on its debt this fall.

"Things continue to devolve in Venezuela," says Russ Dallen, managing partner at LatInvest, a firm in Miami that invests in Latin America.

SOURCE: http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/31/news/economy/venezuela-shortage/index.html?category=economy

Cc: Lalasticlala

Saudi Arabia’s decision to reject an international plan to limit oil output could push other big producers to the brink almost two years into a historic crude-price slump.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest exporter of crude, scuttled the hopes of countries like Russia, Venezuela and Angola, which wanted a deal that would freeze production at January levels and begin regulating the global glut of oil that has sunk prices. Nearly half of the countries sitting at the table in recent days in Doha—Iraq, Nigeria,Angola, Ecuador, Venezuela and Azerbaijan, among others—are seeking financial support from international backers.

In Venezuela, where President Nicolás Maduro trumpeted the oil-producer talks as a first step toward fiscal recovery, the economy is set to contract again this year as petroleum revenues dwindle. The cash crunch has hurt power generation, prompting the government to declare a national holiday on Monday to conserve energy usage and to consider a time-zone change.

Without naming any country, Venezuela’s oil minister Eulogio del Pino said last-minute decisions had “sabotaged” the summit. But speaking to reporters on the side of a conference in Moscow on Monday, he said the drop in oil “prices could be so pronounced that this reality may force us to meet again,” according to the website of the country’s state-run oil company Petróleos de Venezuela SA.

In Russia, where the government was among the architects of the Doha talks, oil minister Alexander Novak said the failure to reach a deal would delay a recovery in oil prices to mid-2017. Senior Russian government officials had been counting on higher oil prices to lift the country out of a recession.

Now, instead of a freeze in production this year, “we expect growth in production compared with 2015,” Mr. Novak said.

Russia’s economy contracted 3.7% in 2015 amid weaker oil prices and Western sanctions. The country’s central bank forecasts gross domestic product to shrink a further 1.5% this year.

The world’s biggest crude exporters failed Sunday to reach an agreement on freezing oil output at January’s levels. Heard on the Street's Helen Thomas looks at what could happen next in oil markets.

Angola, a member of the 13-nation Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, is seeking financial aid from the International Monetary Fund as it prepares for a critical political transition.

“The government of Angola is aware that the high reliance on the oil sector represents a vulnerability to the public finances and the economy more broadly,” Angola’s finance ministry said this month.

Azerbaijan, which relies on oil and gas exports for 75% of its revenues and supported the Doha talks, has also held talks with the IMF on a possible bailout.Nigeria, an OPEC member with inflation at nearly 13%, is holding talks with the World Bank to help it close a forecast $11-billion budget deficit this year.

In Kazakhstan, where the government relies on oil for around half of its revenue, the IMF forecast GDP growth of 0.1% this year, compared with 1.2% in 2015 and 6% in 2013 before oil prices started falling.

Meanwhile, vulnerable oil producers are beginning to pump less petroleum because they don’t have enough money to make investments in the energy sector.

Venezuelan crude production is down by 46,000 barrels a day in March compared with its 2014 average. In Nigeria, a new wave of sabotage has taken 189,000 barrels a day offline in the same period.

Kazakhstan’s oil output is expected to decline this year for the third year in a row because of spending cuts and delays in launching output at the giant Kashagan oil field. Azerbaijan’s production is also is expected to fall this year mostly because of declines at the BP PLC-operated ACG oil field.

In contrast, Saudi Arabia is in a better position to ride out low prices. The kingdom still held foreign reserves worth $582 billion as of late February, according to the IMF, and plans to set up a sovereign fund worth $2 trillion. The Kingdom also has the ability to boost production by 2 million barrels a day at will, according to the International Energy Agency, the bulk of the world’s available spare production capacity.

The Saudis had signaled they were ready to make a deal in Doha over the weekend. The plans changed at the last minute, a day after Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Bloomberg thatthe kingdom wouldn’t make a deal unless Iran also constrained its production. Iran and Saudi Arabia are longtime rivals for power and influence in the Middle East.

Olivier Jakob, an analyst at Switzerland-based energy consultancy Petromatrix, said Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi would have lost credibility with Russia and others in what would have been a symbolic first step which could have led to greater OPEC and non-OPEC cooperation in the future.

A Persian Gulf oil official familiar with Saudi thinking said the kingdom’s oil officials are “well aware that they have lost their credibility.”

“But the kingdom is not totally shutting the door on further cooperation in the future,” the official said, noting that there could be renewed talks on oil production “when the picture in the market is clearer.”

Google is facing a huge fine and major disruption to the way it does business after European officials filed new antitrust charges against the company.

The European Commission said Google was abusing its market position by imposing restrictions on Android device manufacturers and mobile network operators.

Google's (GOOGL, Tech30) Android is the world's dominant mobile operating system. When licensing Android, Google requires smartphone makers to load 11 core Google apps onto the phone before a customer buys it. The apps need to be at least one swipe away from the home screen, and customers cannot delete those apps.


In that "take-it-or-leave-it" approach, Europe says Google has illegally abused its market dominance. Android is particularly popular in Europe, with about 80% of the market for smartphones and tablets, according to the Commission.

"Based on our investigation thus far, we believe that Google's behavior denies consumers a wider choice of mobile apps and services and stands in the way of innovation by other players, in breach of EU antitrust rules," said Margrethe Vestager, the head of competition policy at the European Commission.

The Commission said it believed Google had broken the law by:

1. Requiring manufacturers to pre-install Google Search and Google's Chrome browser and requiring them to set Google Search as the default search service.

2. Preventing manufacturers from selling smartphones running on competing operating systems based on the Android open source code.

3. Giving financial incentives to manufacturers and mobile network operators on condition that they exclusively pre-install Google Search on their devices.

In response, Google general counsel Kent Walker said the company would "demonstrate that Android is good for competition and good for consumers."

Preloading apps such as Google(GOOGL, Tech30) search, YouTube, Gmail and Google Maps play a big part of driving traffic and advertising dollars to Google.

Google reveals little about its Android revenue, but the company has noted that mobile makes up a substantial part of its profit -- more than half, according to eMarketer.

The European Union could fine Google up to 10% of the company's annual global sales, translating into a $7 billion fine.

But this isn't the only antitrust case Google is facing in Europe. It is alsofighting the European Commission on separate charges that it promotes its own results over rivals' blue links in search results. If Google loses that battle, it faces an additional $7 billion fine.


The European Union first began formally investigating the Android antitrust case in April 2015. Announcing the investigation back then, Vestager said that forcing smartphone makers to preload 11 Google apps onto their phones could force out competition.

Google has said that it has a robust and open app store, called Google Play, in which Android customers can download any number of applications that compete with Google's core apps.

But detractors have said that Google is playing unfairly, promoting its own apps over competitors' apps.

Wireless companies and smartphone makers dislike Google's core apps being loaded onto phones from the get-go. Carriers and phone manufacturers continue to load up customers' smartphones with their own apps for email, navigation and on-demand video, many of which require a subscription. But those apps have fallen out of vogue in favor of free apps delivered direct to customers' phones from Google.

The European Union's case against Google is similar to its landmark antitrust case brought against Microsoft(MSFT, Tech30) a decade ago. In that case, Microsoft was found to have abused its dominant position in the desktop operating system market by forcing Windows PC makers to preload Internet Explorer onto their computers.

As a result of the lawsuit, Microsoft had to present European customers with a selection of competitors' Internet browsers to choose from.

But as a reminder of how quickly things change in the industry, Internet Explorer is no longer the dominant Web browser. In fact, Microsoft no longer promotes it in Windows 10.

An employee of Access Bank Plc, Olubunmi Ojoko, on Wednesday, narrated how a former Head of Service, Mr. Stephen Oronsaye, used the Federal Government’s N190m which he allegedly kept in a secret account in his capacity as the then Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Financial Action Task Force.

Ojoko was testifying as the second prosecution witness in Oronsaye’s ongoing trial before Justice Olasunbo Goodluck of a Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja.

The witness said she was the Access Bank’s officer in charge of the account, which the former Head of Service was said to have unilaterally opened in the name of the Presidential Committee on FATF without the approval of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

The account was also said to be  unknown to other members of the committee.

The Economic and Financial Crimes had on March 15, 2016 arraigned Oronsaye on two counts of breach of trust which he allegedly committed between 2013 and 2014 by defrauding the Federal Government of N190m using his position as the then Chairman of the Presidential Committee on FATF.
Oronsaye was accused of converting the  N190m to his  personal use through the investment of the fund in Access Bank Plc’s Banker’s Acceptance for a tenor of 90 days at 9 and 12 per cents interest rates “in violation of the extant financial regulations”.

The defendant, while still serving as the Head of Service of the Federation, was appointed as chairman of the PCFATF, which was set up to ensure the passage of the anti-money laundering bill and countering financial terrorism, among other terms of reference.

Ojoko opened her testimony shortly after the first prosecution witness, Ngunnan Kakwagh, an EFCC investigator, was cross-examined by the defence team led by Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN) on Wednesday.

Kakwagh in her earlier testimony on March 15, had alleged  that the ex-Head of Service unilaterally operated the Access Bank account in the name of the PCFATF and received a total of N240m from the CBN through the account.

She had  said Oronsaye also made “five structured payments” of N9m each, making a total of N45m, into the account in one day in September 2013.

She said out of the total N285m, Oronsaye invested N190m in fixed deposit and converted it along with the accrued interest into personal use.

Ojoko, led in evidence by the EFCC’s lead prosecuting counsel, Mr. Ufom Uket, on Wednesday, narrated how Oronsaye opened the Access Bank  account on behalf of the PCFATF in 2012, without obtaining an approval from the Accountant-General of the Federation.

She said, “He (Oronsaye) called me that he needed to open an account on behalf of the Presidential Committee on Financial Action Task Force.
“I met him at his residence in Asokoro, where I handed him the documents for the account, including the Access Bank account opening request of the committee signed by him, his passport photograph, copy of his passport and documents that set up the committee by the then Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
“I scrutinised the documents and discovered that the Accountant-General of the Federation’s approval was not included. So I asked him for it and he said it was not necessary. I asked for the Accountant-General of the Federation’s approval because it is needed when opening a government account. Since he said that it wasn’t necessary, I took him by his word.
“I took the documents to the bank and the account was opened.”

She confirmed that she never met any other member of the committee, including Mr. Jalal Arabi, a counsel in the presidential Villa, who served as the secretary to the committee, throughout the period the account was operated.

She said there were a total of four lodgments into the account from the CBN and other cash deposits.

She said the lodgments totalled N285m, part of which were invested in fixed deposits with part of the interests that accrued re-invested.

She said as of the time the account was closed, Oronsaye had withdrawn from the account about N150m which was partly the accrued interests on the investments, through cheques which he allegedly issued in favour of himself and various beneficiaries.

She said besides “the direct withdrawals” by Oronsaye, “there were other various beneficiaries”.

Ojoko said, “The first transfer was N50m in October 2012. The second was in April 2012 was N90m from the CBN. In May 2013, there was  cash lodgment of N45m . The fourth lodgment of N100m came in December 2014 from CBN.

“After the first lodgment (of N50m from CBN) several cheques were drawn by the defendant (Oronsaye). In favour various beneficiaries.

“The second inflow of N90m was invested in fixed deposit account. It was fixed in Banker’s Acceptance which is a form of investment, for 90 days at 9 per cent. On maturity, the N45m (the third inflow) had come and it was fixed for 90 days.

“Upon maturity, they (the investments) were usually rolled over on the instruction of Mr. Stephen Oronsaye and the interest were credited into his current account.

“The N100m (the fourth inflow) came in December 2014 and it was placed in fixed in Banker’s Acceptance for 90 days.

“The total ofinvestments and roll overs were about 28.
“About N150m interests accrued on all the investments.
“Now the account is at zero balance after the N163.5m in it was transferred to the Treasury Single Account.”

The witness was led to read from the statement of the account which was tendered and admitted by the court without any objection from the defence.

Giving the breakdown of the cash withdrawals from the account, she said, ” On September 20, 2013 -there was a cheque withdrawal of N900,000 in favour of Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.

“On October 31, 2013, there was a cheque withdrawal of N500,000 in favour of Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On December 12, 2013, there was a cash withdrawal of N3m in favour of Mr. Stepehen Oronsaye.
“On December 23, 2013, there was another withdrawal of N3m in favour of Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On January 29, 2014, there was another withdrawal of N3m in favour of Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On February 3, 2014, there was a withdrawal of N3m by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On February 17, 2014, there wa a withdrawal of N600,000 by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On April 8, 2014, Mr. Stephen Oronsaye, withdrew N3m with cheque.
“On July 3, 2014, there was withdrawal of N3m by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On July 10, 2014, there was withdrawal of N3m by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On October  30, 2014, N900,000 was withdrawn by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On December, 17, 2014, there was  N3m withdrawal by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On December 22, 2014, the sum of N950,000 was withdrawn by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On Decenber 24, 2014, there was withdrawal of  N980,000 by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye
“On January 6, 2015, there was N2m withdrawal by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.
“On March 16, 2015, the sum of N650,000 was withdrawn  by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye
“On March 20, 2015, there was N3m withdrawal by Mr. Stephen Oronsaye.”

The account opening package, bank statements, mandate documents raised by Oronsaye and other documents relating to the account were admitted as exhibits.

The judge adjourned till Thursday for cross-examination of the witness.

mascaraWand:
Check ur mail.

Bro, cab you please send the past question to me? maxwelluchedili@yahoo.com. Thanks

Lol! African international superstar! Hahahaha

FLAWLES:
Oboy;this one s strong . . .cleans Eye . .wait ooo. . .Chisos 1st to comment?1st time on NL(dedicating it to my pastor)Ha le lu Ja

You are pretty!!!

marieolae:
Guys that can cook,, huge turn on!!

Girls that are pretty, HUGE TURN ON!!!!! You rock swdy!

Viciyus:
The tin happen to me.
One day she say she dey come my house,

If you see how I take clean every were heh,

Na that day I buy broom,

That same day I buy mop,

The same time of that day, I buy pillow

After I clean everywhere, I forget to park one of my dirty boxer
Were small amount of mess and shitte were dey the boxer

As she come my house, sit down for my bed, I go buy her coke and bread.

She come dey drink the coke ohh, weti carry her eye see that boxer na only God know.


The mumu girl come say "viciyus is this your boxer"

I just smile tell her say na my rag ohhh. Even use am take clean some of the coke were she pure for ground.


Shall after she go. I wash my boxer dey wear am.

Lol!

MzNelly:
Leave me alone na

Awww.... You are pretty true. Nice one!

Behold, the girlfriend of a deranged man! Time will tell the story!

Lol!

The whole thing sounds very incoherent. Can't even make any sense out of this.

OBJ... It is now clear to me that Obasanjo is a staunch adherent of Robert Greene's 48 laws of power. This is a literal demonstration of the 17th law of power... "Keep others in suspended terror, cultivate an air of unpredictability." Now he has everyone confused... Both GEJ and GMB... #mindgames.

I am gradually getting fed up with the kind of posts that I see here. This is no longer funny. What nonsense! Shey na because person never shout for una? I dey wait make una use una head... Mtchewwww

Can't believe am missing in that list...

VATICAN CITY — In a marked shift in tone likely to be discussed in parishes around the world, an assembly of Roman Catholic bishops convened by Pope Francis at the Vatican released a preliminary document on Monday calling for the church to welcome and accept gay people, unmarried couples and those who have divorced, as well as the children of these less traditional families.

The bishops’ report, issued midway through a landmark two-week meeting, does not change church doctrine or teaching, and will now be subjected to fierce debate and revision at the assembly.

But it is the first signal that the institutional church may follow the direction Francis has set in the first 18 months of his papacy, away from condemnation of unconventional family situations and toward understanding, openness and mercy.
Continue reading the main story
Related Coverage

Pope Francis' surprising comments came in a lengthy interview in which he criticized the church for putting dogma before love, and for prioritizing moral doctrines over serving the poor and marginalized.
Pope Says Church Is ‘Obsessed’ With Gays, Abortion and Birth ControlSEPT. 19, 2013
Pope Francis said that the Roman Catholic church had grown “obsessed” with preaching about abortion, gay marriage and contraception in his most extensive and revealing interview since he was elected in March.

Previous synods have produced little, but some participants in this one have likened it to the historic Second Vatican Council convened just over 50 years ago, which produced monumental changes in church liturgy, relations with other faiths and the conception of the roles of priests and laypeople.

A Vatican official said the church should “respect the dignity” of every person as a meeting of bishops considered a document that could signal an easing of rigid views on homosexuality and marriage.
Publish Date October 13, 2014.

The 12-page report, written by a committee picked by Francis, says that without abandoning church teaching on the sacrament of marriage, pastors should recognize that there are “positive aspects of civil unions and cohabitation.” That is a striking departure from traditional Catholic preaching that such couples are “living in sin.”

The report also says that gay people have “gifts and qualities to offer to the Christian community,” and that some gay couples provide each other “mutual aid to the point of sacrifice” and “precious support in the life of the partners.”

The document was read aloud to the nearly 200 bishops, priests and lay people gathered at the synod, as the assembly is called. The reading was followed by responses and objections from 41 bishops in the synod hall, a portent of disputes to come.

The synod has pitted those bishops who are in accord with Francis’s vision against those who insist that the church is at risk of betraying its definitive doctrines on marriage and homosexuality.

Archbishop Bruno Forte, the synod’s special secretary, said in a news conference afterward that while the church does not condone gay unions or gay marriage, it must “respect the dignity of every person.”

“The fundamental idea is the centrality of the person independently of sexual orientation,” he said.

The report will now be discussed and modified in the next week by working groups of bishops who will scrutinize each section, and then a final report will be issued after the synod to be disseminated and discussed worldwide over the next year. There will be a second synod in Rome next October, but in the end, after all the consultation and debate, it is Pope Francis who will ultimately set the course.

Cardinal Luis Antonio G. Tagle of Manila told the news conference that some of the bishops felt the “spirit” of Vatican II in this synod. He said the report was a marker against which the bishops could “see what needs to be deepened, what needs to be clarified, and what other things should be raised, which we have not yet raised

“So the drama continues.”

One of the most contentious issues before the synod is whether to give the sacrament of communion to Catholics who divorced and remarried without having their first marriage annulled by the church, which is often a lengthy and expensive process. The church teaches that marriage is indissoluble.

The document acknowledged that the bishops were split on the question of communion, and left it open to further debate. But it called for the church to treat divorced Catholics and those who have remarried with respect, “avoiding any language or behavior that might make them feel discriminated against.”

Some conservative bishops who oppose any change have been outspoken. Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, an American now serving in the Vatican, said in an interview that will be published Tuesday in the Italian daily newspaper Il Foglio that “worrying tendencies” were emerging from the synod because they “are supporting the possibility of adopting a practice that deviates from the truth of the faith.”

Many conservatives have complained that because the media has been excluded from the synod sessions, the synod discussions are being spun by the Vatican spokesmen charged with summarizing the proceedings in daily news conferences.

“A large number of bishops do not accept the ideas of openness, but few know that,” Cardinal Burke told Il Foglio.

The “progressives” at the synod, who want change in the church, “are in positions of strength, put there by Pope Francis,” said Sandro Magister, a Vatican expert with the Italian newsmagazine L’espresso, in an interview on Monday. “The pope is not impartial.”

News of the preliminary document was played down in the Italian news media, and some Vatican officials cautioned that it was not conclusive. The Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman, said in an interview with The New York Times: “It should not be overvalued as a document of reference. It’s merely a working paper.”

Yet the document was greeted with instant enthusiasm by gay rights groups and advocates of church reform who have been hoping the synod would produce substantive change.

Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry, an advocacy group for gay Catholics, said, “These recognitions are total reversals of earlier church statements which labeled such an orientation as ‘objectively disordered’ and which viewed gay and lesbian people in faith communities as problems and suspect persons.”

In the United States, many parishes quietly welcome gay couples, in the church’s own “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach. But there have been reports of gay couples denied communion; gay parishioners evicted from choirs and parish councils; gay teachers and professors dismissed from schools; and gay children refused admittance to parochial schools.

Some analysts said that the synod’s document would influence pastors, even as it was debated over the next year.

The Rev. James Martin, editor at large of America, the Jesuit magazine, said that “even though this is an interim document, it represents a revolution in the way the church speaks about our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters.”

However, the document reflects what appears to be a definite consensus among most bishops against same-sex marriage.

The document also criticizes pressure by the United Nations and some Western nations to compel countries in Africa and elsewhere to rescind laws that restrict the rights of gay people, in exchange for financial aid. It says it is unacceptable “that international bodies make financial aid dependent on the introduction of regulations inspired by gender ideology.”

But this was a rare departure into politics. Over all, the preliminary document sets a pastoral tone that echoes Francis’ words. It says the church must address “real world problems,” care for “wounded families” and understand that irregular situations like divorce are often imposed, not chosen.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/14/world/europe/vatican-signals-more-tolerance-toward-gays-and-remarriage.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpSumSmallMediaHigh&module=second-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news

Govt may face cash crunch, delay in salary payment 

AS the prices of crude oil continue to decline, there is anxiety over the impact of this development on the nation’s economy. 

   Global oil prices fell again Monday, amid worry about slow growth and reports that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) wants to maintain current output levels.

  Brent crude fell to a near four-year low of $87.74 a barrel earlier, before recovering some ground to $88.46.

  According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total production of crude oil and liquid fuels rose by 10 per cent in the last five years, from 83.3 million barrels per day (bpd) in early 2009 to 91 million bpd in mid-2014. 

  In recent years, demand has been losing strength. The United States, Europe and Japan have reduced their consumption of oil since 2008 by around 10 per cent or four million bpd, due to improvements in energy efficiency and low  Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth.

  Economic experts believe that the continuous drop in the price of crude oil would affect Nigeria’s 2014 budget benchmark price of $77.50 per barrel.

  They believe that for an economy that is 95 per cent dependent on oil for its foreign exchange earnings, and 85 per cent dependent for revenue, this development should be a cause for concern.

  The experts say that the current trend with oil price poses major downside risks to some key macroeconomic variables and the general economic conditions.

  The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), hinted that current drop in oil price would impact negatively on government fiscal operations, naira exchange rate, capital flow reversals, stock market, foreign reserves, inflation and interest rate.  

  Executive Director, African Heritage Institution (AfriHeritage), Dr. Ifediora Amobi, said: “To date, crude oil prices have dropped 15 per cent since 1st January 2014, and at a current price of less than $91.60 a barrel versus $115.70 a barrel on June 19, 2014, if this declining price trend continues, Nigeria’s 2014 budget benchmark price of $77.50 per barrel will become more and more jeopardised, thus having a serious effect on Nigeria’s short-term economic and fiscal growth.”

   In an interview with The Guardian yesterday, Amobi said that Nigeria’s revenue was over 90 per cent dependent on crude oil, adding that any disruption in the international market  would affect  the country  adversely, thus a 1.2 per cent drop in the price of crude oil decreases Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings by 1.0 per cent. 

  He noted that shale gas technology was fast catching on, and in the near future, the country’s other major trading partners would follow suit. “This is a reality check because we have been paying lip service to diversifying the economy and have never achieved more than 10 per cent revenue from the non-oil sector in over 35 years.”

  He explained: “The global economy driven by the industrial countries of the west is now stabilising after the financial crisis of 2008. As a consequence, unemployment is falling and the risk of an imminent deflationary crisis has been reduced in the United States and parts of Europe and Asia. The current global economic cycle is moving into a phase in which simulative central bank policies, which were created in a desperate attempt to sustain the global economy and led to the crude oil price boom of the past four years, is being gradually reversed.”

  According to Amobi,  global oil demand  is diminishing as more countries are discovering oil and  alternative sources of energy.   

“Added to this decline in demand is the global weather forecast that is pointing towards a milder than normal winter in 2014. This is also not good for Nigeria because a mild winter means that less oil will be demanded for heating, and thus less demand for Nigeria’s crude in other parts of the world.

  “This problem will linger for a long time, because most OPEC nations are facing growing fiscal deficits, which prevent them  from  cutting  their oil production to bolster the price of oil like they used to in the past when oil prices dropped significantly. Today, a lot of them, including Nigeria can no longer afford the loss of oil revenues”, he added.

  On the implication of decline in crude oil price to different sectors of the economy, the Director-General, LCCI, Muda Yusuf, said that for an economy that is 95 per cent dependent on oil for its foreign exchange earnings; and 85 per cent dependent for revenue, this development should be a cause for concern.

   Yusuf said that the single most important vulnerability of the Nigerian economy is the heavy dependence on oil. 

  He stated: “The economy is 85 per cent dependent on oil revenue.  Declining oil price means reduction in revenue inflows.  This has implications for the capacity of government at all levels to meet their statutory obligations.  Most states are over 70 per cent dependent on statutory allocations   which make the impact of declining oil price very profound.  This is even more so when the culture of big and profligate spending has been entrenched.  Already, some states are having issues with the payment of the salaries of their workers.  Many have issues with payment to contractors. Major adjustments in government spending [at all levels] is clearly inevitable.  

  “Exchange rate is a price determined by forces of supply and demand.  The strongest factor on the supply side is the forex inflow from crude oil.  Therefore, a downward trend in oil price would naturally result in exchange rate depreciation.  Although the CBN has been struggling to defend the naira, this may not be sustainable if the slide in oil prices persists.

  “The Nigerian economy is estimated to be over 80” dependent on imports.  Exchange rate depreciation would mean new pressures on production and operating costs in the economy, which would generate new inflationary pressures.  High importation costs will also come with high import duty payment, port charges, VAT as all of these are computed as percentages of import value.”  

  Yusuf noted that the trend of oil  prices was a major driver of foreign capital flows, especially portfolio flows.  “This is because the prosperity of the Nigeria economy is perceived to be inextricably tied to the developments in the oil market, and rightly so. For portfolio investors, oil price and exchange rate conditions are major indicators that drive their investment decisions. The impact of such capital flow reversals is often profound in the stock market and the foreign exchange market.”

  He added: “There is a correlation between stock market performance and the fortunes of the oil market. The Nigerian stock market is well known to be more vibrant when oil prices are high.  A major factor in this is the profundity of foreign portfolio investors who currently accounts for about 60 per cent of the market.  Their sensitivity to oil price and exchange rate movements is very high.

  “Furthermore, declining oil price scenario would result in further tightening of monetary policy to preserve macroeconomic stability.  The result is high interest rates and superior returns on investments in the money market which could have negative impact on the stock market.”

  He noted that the declining oil price scenario would put pressure on foreign reserves. “Declining oil price scenario would reduce the accretion to reserves. Therefore there is a good chance that the reserves will come under pressure.  Besides, the customary disposition of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)  to  defend the naira through increased supply of foreign exchange will take its toll on the robustness of the external reserves. This is even more so when the excess crude account has dried up.

  “The likely CBN response to the current scenario is to intensify the tightening of monetary policy.  This will further push up interest rates, increase cost of funds to investors in the economy and constrain the access of the banks to investible funds.  All this would impact negatively on the bottom line of enterprises in the economy.

  “The good news in all of this is the likely moderation of cost of fuel importation.  This is well known to be a major burden on the finances of the country.  The share of the nation’s resources committed to fuel importation and fuel subsidy is horrendous and perhaps scandalous.  It is hoped that declining oil price would moderate this cost.”
Source: http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/lead-story/182879-anxiety-over-decline-in-crude-oil-prices

These ar nt charly boy's grand children op... those boys ar M and K.

The only point worth considering in all that gibberish is the 'look' part. Actually, I think Nairaland need to up it's look a little bit. Just ma thought tho..

Seriously?....

sexzskil: Honestly speaking, her demise may be the most celebrated & mourned death of all time, UNIVERSALLY. ALL hail The Queen! Long Live HISTORY most powerful monarch!!

If dat's you on your profile, then yu ar like the prettiest lady I've met here on nairaland!

Mi Lickey...

A lot late for this.... RIP man.

...with their tiny racks... Mtchewwww

Lilimax: This can only happen in Naija...
He should be arrested immediately for impersonation.

Naija police were not left out from those that were deceived ...

That wrestler is here for an international event. He is Mr Harmse Wilfred popularly known as Mr Wrestling. You can google him. He's neither an impersonator nor has ever claimed to be Hulk. The fools that wanted to be fooled were fooled.

The so-called impersonator is actually a well-acclaimed wrestler of international repute Mr Harmse Wilfred popularly known as 'Mr Wrestling.' He is in Nigeria for an event tagged 'Wrestling for global Peace and unity'. You only have to blame those who were mistook him for Hulk Hogan. He has never claimed to be Hulk Hogan. So OP, Mr wrestling deserves an apology from you for calling him a fake Hulk Hogan on a public thread.

Seriously! If dat guy's a fashion icon, den I must be the queen's first born, Dat makes me next to the throne!

50000 really?.... Buh seriously, who the hell are BBOG?

Johnwizzy: Love your lover like Juliet, Fight for him
like Spartacus, Rescue him like Michael
Scofield,Protect him like Jack Bauer, Don't cheat on him like Tiger woods, Fuvvck him like porn-star, Don't be stingy like Arsenal, Win trophies for him like Man United, Boast about him like Chelsea, Have confidence in him like Barcelona, Don't disappoint him like Liverpool FC, Don't promise him things
u cant fulfil like PDP, Sweep him on your
Bed away like APC, Don't keep him in
darkness like PHCN, Don't cause him pain
like Boko Haram, Win gold for him like
Usain Bolt, impress well like crixus.... Be
funny but don't act Foolishly like Akpors

@OP just to make the thread lively before people cruxify me

But sure money is import coz you won't want to suffer like Arsene Wenger.

Quarantine him like Ebola!