Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made public the new proposed constitution that permits the president to seek re-election indefinitely. It’s very likely he will be the only one to benefit from such a measure.

As he talked to the nation last night from the National Assembly, the 53-year-old president summarized his plans to create a new military, municipal and federal districts, nationalize natural gas and coal resources, grant the state increased power to expropriate property and to create co-operatives and state enterprise.

“We have to change the geometry of power,'' Chavez said in comments broadcast by state television.

The new measures to change that balance of power would strip the Central Bank of all autonomy, allowing the government to spend the country's foreign reserves. The central bank currently has $25.3 billion in reserves.

Mr Chávez took office in 1999 and was the originator of the constitution that now he’s trying to change. Last December he was re-elected and since then he nationalized the telecoms and electricity industries and closed the main opposition television station.
Chavez is still popular amongst fellow countryman thanks to oil money used for social programs. But there is much polling evidence that a large majority opposes socialism and value democracy. The opposition thinks that Chávez is tearing down the country’s economy and its democracy as well, and needs ever more money to buy popularity.