MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Maduro prays and pledges loyalty ‘beyond life’ on replacing Chavez

The Vice-president in his first official act as head of the Executive

Venezuelan Vice president Nicolas Maduro prayed on Monday for the quick recovery of leader Hugo Chavez and pledged loyalty “beyond life” in his first action as head of the Executive.

“Chavez has his people; he has us and will always have us in this battle of victory after victory. With our loyalty beyond life we are going to remain faithful to Hugo Chavez”, said Maduro with tears in his eyes during the official ceremony as head of the Executive.

Maduro was left as head of the presidential office following Chavez’s trip to Cuba for further treatment and surgery on the cancer he was diagnosed 18 months ago but still with no major public details of where it is located and how virulent.

Last Saturday Chavez appointed Maduro as his successor in case he is not able of taking office next January 10 when his new six year mandate begins following his October re-re-election. In that case new presidential elections must be held in the following thirty days.

After mentioning the heroes of Venezuela’s independence, Maduro extended “eternal thanks to Chavez” for having recovered Simon Bolivar ‘alive’ and for “having resuscitated the conscience of the Venezuelan people”.

At the official ceremony: the opening of a cable railway linking poor neighbourhoods to the east of Caracas, Madero invited the audience to pray for the health of Chavez.

“Let us pray ‘Our Father’ for president Chavez, for the inauguration of this work, for his health and for a long life so he can keep ruling here in our motherland” said the Vice president and Foreign minister who concluded pleading for God to free the motherland and the lealer of ‘all evil’

Maduro called on the people to overcome the circumstances with courage, love and prayers, and at the same time asked support with the vote for the government’s candidates in next Sunday’s governors’ election.

“That day when we are at the voting booth, we will be there with Chavez, we will pray form our hearts, we will pray for the recovery of our ‘comandante’ he added.

Maduro insisted that the vote must “come from the deep of our heart” so “we can complete the cycle of last 7 October when Chavez managed a third consecutive re-election extending his mandate until 2019.

“Victory on 7 October; victory on 16 December, clearing the way for political stability in the country and keep advancing with the development plans for Venezuela, as our ‘comandante’ has instructed us”.