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| Hugo Chavez |
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is in a "complex"
condition and facing a tough recovery after his latest surgery for cancer in
Cuba, Vice President Nicolas Maduro said on Wednesday.
Looking grave-faced in an address to the nation, Maduro
urged Venezuelans to unite in prayer for their 58-year-old president, and to
keep faith that Chavez would return soon, reports Reuters.
"Yesterday's operation was complex, difficult and
delicate, so the post-operation process will also be a complex and tough
process," Maduro said, flanked by ministers who flew in overnight after
accompanying Chavez in hospital.
Maduro, whom Chavez has named as a preferred successor
should he be incapacitated, offered no medical details but called on the nation
to stay united and in prayer.
"We maintain ... faith that with God's help we will
overcome and sooner rather than later we will have our commander president
here."
Supporters have been holding prayer vigils around the South
American nation, while opponents also sent the socialist leader best wishes for
a successful recovery.
The stakes are enormous - not just for leadership of a
nation with the world's largest oil reserves but also for allies around Latin
America and the Caribbean who rely on Chavez's generous oil subsidies and other
aid.
President Raul Castro's communist government in Cuba is
particularly vulnerable because of its dependence on more than 100,000 barrels
of oil per day from Venezuela.
After 14 years of acrimony with the bombastic Chavez,
Washington is watching the situation closely, too.
Venezuela's government said on Tuesday night that a six-hour
operation - Chavez's fourth in Havana since mid-2011 for a recurring cancer in
the pelvic region - had concluded "correctly and successfully."
No medical details were released, leaving Venezuelans again
guessing about what type of cancer Chavez was suffering, and if all malignant
tissues had been completely removed.
Opposition leaders criticized the government for lack of
transparency, comparing the handling of Chavez's cancer with the detailed
doctors' reports made public during other Latin American leaders' bouts with
the disease in recent years.
Chavez changed the panorama before flying to Cuba by naming
Maduro as his chosen replacement and urging Venezuelans to vote for him should
an election be triggered by his departure from office.
Maduro, who is also foreign minister, is handling the
day-to-day leadership of government.
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