Chavez tells officials to tighten belts in austerity drive

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez announced a clamp down on government spending on Wednesday to offset tumbling oil revenues. "Not a solitary Bolivar will be spent in superficial costs or because of corruption or incompetence," Chavez vowed, calling for cutbacks in the governments use of telephones, credit cards, and car rentals.
He also said top government officials should be subject to a salary cap. Venezuelas government is facing a 6.7 percent contraction of the state budget, as falling oil prices bite into revenues from the countrys most lucrative export. Speaking to governors and parliamentarians from his United Socialist Party, Chavez also announced the creation of two state firms to run the countrys ports and airports, taking them out of the hands of regional authorities.