The rumor mill was fueled Thursday at El Arepazo Restaurant in Doral where a young man received a text from a journalist in Venezuela telling him President Hugo Chavez was dead. South Florida resident Carlos Farha talked to NBC 6's Myriam Masihy.
The rumor mill was fueled Thursday at El Arepazo Restaurant in Doral where a young man received a text from a journalist in Venezuela telling him President Hugo Chavez was dead.
It's a rumor that has been circulating for months and that was sparked again Thursday when Venezuelan Vice-President Nicolas Maduro appeared on national television saying Chavez is "battling for his health, for his life." This, after a long bought with cancer.
Hugo Chavez Having Trouble Breathing, Government Says
South Florida resident Carlos Farha told NBC 6 he feels for human life but can't feel real bad "for someone who has stood for what he has stood for and what he has done ."
Chavez hasn't spoken publicly since before his latest operation in Cuba in December. He returned to Venezuela on Feb. 18, but according to a Panamanian Ambassador, he went back in bad shape.
"It is almost practically confirmed that President Chavez is in a coma, he's been brain dead since December 30th," Ambassador Guillermo Cochez said.
Many people ask, what would be the reasoning behind keeping Chavez' image alive? According to the former president of Venezuela's Chamber of Commerce, it's to set up Vice President Maduro as a successor.
"They want to make Maduro look presidential," Fernandez said, adding that the Venezuelan government has already violated the constitution by not turning over the power to the general assembly president. The Venezuelan government has denied Chavez is brain dead and rejects the statements made by the Panamanian Ambassador.
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