Thousands of government supporters rallied outside the Presidential Palace of Miraflores in Caracas last Saturday to welcome back head of state Hugo Chavez after his return from three weeks of convalescence in Havana, Cuba.

T/ COI P/ Presidential Press

The people gather at Miraflores to celebrate the return of their president when he returned from Cuba following his second surgery.

“Here I am anew, in permanent return, full of strength and love and with a great desire to live. With the will of God, Christ, and the people I will live. We will live and we will overcome”, the socialist leader said from the People’s Balcony as he addressed the multitudes gathered to express their backing of his presidency. The 57-year old Chavez underwent surgery in Cuba on February 26 for a cancerous legion discovered in the same area where a tumor was removed last June. When he arrived back in Venezuela Friday night, he was met by his Executive cabinet at the International Airport Simon Bolivar in Maiquetia and reported to feel in “a process of clear recovery”.

President Chávez greets the people from Balcón del Pueblo at the presidential palace at Miraflores on March 17, 2012

According to the President, the operation carried out in Cuba was successfully performed and his medical team has confirmed the lack of metastasis as a result of the new tumor.

March 17: President Chávez Returns to Venezuela Today! by Les Blough in Venezuela. Axis of Logic and Gramma Int'l.

While details on the recurrence of the cancer have been sparse, Chavez did make mention during the rally last weekend to a new cycle of treatment to begin as soon as the wounds from the operation heal satisfactorily. “Now, in the next few days, I have to begin treatment and radiotherapy to attack any kind of new threat. This [new] cancer won’t be able to beat me either”, he affirmed during the rally on Saturday.

Speaking to the crowd, the President of the OPEC nation appeared energized and in good President Hugo Chavez returns to Venezuela, vows electoral victory spirits as he sang a rendition of a traditional Venezuelan song and danced to the rhythms of folkloric music.

“He looks really good and ready to fight for [the presidential elections of] October 7. But we have to tell him to take it easy. It’s the people who need to fight because we’re healthy”, said Rosa Gomez, a social worker present for the rally.

All Eyes on October

Accompanied by his daughter Rosa, and key members of his cabinet and reelection campaign command, the President assured those gathered in front of Miraflores and the viewing public that his illness will not prevent his candidacy for a third consecutive 6-year term as head of state.

With presidential elections set in the Caribbean nation for October 7, Chavez expressed his total confidence in achieving yet another electoral victory. “The romping that we’re going to give the Venezuelan right is going to be memorable, not only in Venezuelan history but in the history of the entire world”, he exclaimed to his supporters.

The former Lieutenant Colonel and head of the 7 million member United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) commented that the campaign plan for the country’s largest political party will begin to take effect in the coming month.

Beginning on April 14 and in commemoration of the failed coup d’etat that attempted to oust the democratically elected president from power in 2002, the electoral apparatus of the PSUV will begin its national mobilizations to ensure a positive result in October’s contest. According to many polls, Chavez maintains a considerable advantage over his challenger, Henrique Capriles Radonski, governor of the state of Miranda and winner of the opposition’s primaries held on February 12.

One such survey, carried out by the Venezuelan Institute of Data Analysis (IVAD) puts Chavez’s support at 56.5 percent of the population while Radonski accounts for less than half of that number at 26.6 percent. Although the gap remains sizeable, Chavez warned his followers of potential opposition destabilization attempts, accusing the right wing of utilizing extra-electoral tactics to discredit the gains of the current government and create fear in the population.

“They don’t know how to play clean. There are always some hidden cards and they’ve already begun to use them. This is and will be a difficult battle but we’re going to win it”, he said. As part of this strategy, the head of state cited the campaign of misinformation being promoted by the Venezuelan right with respect to his health and recovery.

“This is another one of the false stories that the opposition is spreading, that I’m dying and that I can’t handle the campaign”, he said.

In the end, the two-time incumbent urged his backers to stay true to the principles of compassion and equality that have formed the base of Bolivarian Revolution.

Chavez reiterated the overall purpose of his 13 years in power, stating that the main goal of his administration has been the advancement of the interests of “those who have suffered and those most in need”.

“There are negative feelings and entrenched redoubts of hate in some sectors of the nation which are against the people. In some sectors of the right, it is hate and negativity that rule. We need to neutralize this hate forever with love and positive spirit”, he asserted.

During his speech, the Venezuelan President also encouraged party activists and backers to criticize his administration for its faults, but also to maintain loyal to the Revolution and the working classes that it represents. “The streets belong to the people, not the bourgeoisie! The neighborhoods belong to the people. It’s not going to be the bourgeoisie who begins to take over the neighborhoods. The military barracks are also taken by the people and will continue to be in the hands of the people”, he exclaimed.

Source: Correo del Orinoco