Venezuelan President put the country on the mercy of God and nature

Venezuelan President put the country on the mercy of God and natureTo replenish the country's depleted water reservoirs and defuse a worsening crisis over electricity and water shortages, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has put himself at the mercy of God and nature to bring timely rainfall.

He is spearheading a "Bolivarian revolution," inspired by 19th-century visionary Simon Bolivar, which aims to transform the country with popular democracy, economic independence and equal distribution of wealth, Chavez says.

Even if that means more prolonged misery with the shortages until the desired endgame is reached, the opposition is praying precisely the opposite that God will not help Chavez out.

Chavez, who refers to political opponents as "squalid," faces mid-term elections in September and presidential election in 2012.

Chavez said during his weekly radio and television broadcast," The squalid are praying for no rain. But you can bet it's going to rain, pour with rain, because God is Bolivarian. God is no opponent, God can't be a squalid. Nature is with us."

Shortages of electricity and water began last year as the drought set in and continued draws on reservoirs undermined power generation. The opposition is predicting a complete shutdown by June and, following similar warnings from the power generation companies but in the absence of verifiable information from officials, the energy outlook is uncertain.

The cities and rural Venezuela are hit hard as electricity supplies are less frequent than before and water shortage is on a high.

Continuing to run the power generation turbines without sufficient replenishment of water levels could prove disastrous for Venezuela's power grid, Independent industry experts said.

Food prices have soared, hoarding and black markets are on the rise, despite the government's tough measures that have affected everyone from big businesses to small shops, schools and ordinary citizens. (With Inputs from Agencies)