Hugo Chavez fighting for his life, says Venezuela vice president

Hugo Chavez is fighting for his life, Venezuelan Vice President Nicolas Maduro told local television on Thursday, the BBC reported.

Maduro, Chavez’s appointed successor, said his boss was “battling there for his health, for his life, and we’re accompanying him,” the Associated Press reported.

Chavez, 58, has not been seen in public since undergoing his fourth cancer operation in Cuba on Dec. 11.

He returned to Venezuela mid-February and is reportedly suffering from a severe respiratory infection, the BBC said.

Reuters reported Tuesday that most Venezuelans believe their leader will recover from his ilness and return to active rule.

Local pollster Hinterlaces said 60 percent of interviewees believe Chavez will be cured and back to governing.

Only 12 percent believe his condition is incurable.

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