Chavez battling cancer again
CAR ACAS, VENEZUELA –Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was heading back to Cuba on Sunday for a third cancer surgery after naming his vice-president as his choice to lead the country if the illness cuts short his presidency.
Chavez’s announcement Saturday night unleashed new uncertainty about the country’s future, and his supporters poured into city plazas across the nation to pray for his recovery from what appears to be an aggressive type of cancer.
Several outside medical experts said that based on Chavez’s account of his condition and his treatment so far, they doubt the cancer can be cured.
Chavez said he hasn’t given up.
“With the grace of God, we’ll come out victorious,” said Chavez, who held up a crucifix and kissed it during his Saturday night appearance.
The 58-year-old president is still scheduled to be sworn in for a new six-year term Jan. 10. He has been in office for nearly 14 years.
“There are risks. Who can deny it?” Chavez said, seated at the presidential palace beside new Vice-President Nicolas Maduro and other aides. “In any circumstance, we should guarantee the advance of the Bolivarian Revolution.”
Chavez, who won re-election on Oct. 7, said he would undergo surgery in Havana in the coming days. Lawmakers on Sunday unanimously agreed to grant him permission to leave the country for the operation.
Throughout his treatment, Chavez has kept secret various details about his illness, including the precise location of the tumours and the type of cancer. He has said he travels to Cuba for treatment because his cancer was diagnosed by doctors there.
National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello said there are no plans at this time for Chavez to cede power, even temporarily, as president.
“He’s not asking for permission to leave his duties,” Cabello said. “The chief of this revolution is Hugo Chavez.”
The president, who had just returned from Cuba early Friday, said on television late Saturday that tests had found a return of “some malignant cells.”
Chavez’s trip home seemed aimed at sending a directive to his inner circle that Maduro is his chosen successor.