VENEZUELA-Tensions are mounting in the South American country of Venezuela as Hugo Chavez announces that he has undergone surgery to have a cancerous tumor removed in an operation that took place in Cuba. The Venezuelan president has kept a very low profile in the recent weeks since his operation.

With no visible successor to the presidency, politicians in that country have begun jockeying for power as Chavez continues treatment. Even though Chavez says that his condition is “evolving satisfactorily,” this hasn’t stopped conflicts within the different factions of his forces as they begin to vie for power. Chavez has declined to say where the cancerous tumor was located or how long he will remain in Cuba undergoing treatment.

Adan Chavez, the brother of the president has made it known that he is positioning himself as next in line for the presidency and has publicly stated, “It would be unforgivable to limit ourselves to only the electoral and not see other forms of struggle, including armed struggle.”

The media has been rife with reports on Chavez’s condition and speculation as to the extent of the surgery that the Venezualean president has undergone since the announcement that he had undergone surgery to treat a pelvic absess back on June 10th. U.S. Intellegence has released information to the El Nuevo Herald that Chavez is in critical condition and he had undergone surgery for prostate cancer. But, Venezuelan Vice Foreign Minister Temir Porras said that the enemies of Venezuela should stop dreaming and stated, “The only thing that has metastasized is the cancer of the Miami Herald and the rest of the right-wing media.”

It will be very difficult for any of the contenders to amass the support needed from the country’s poor because of the lack of charisma and personality that is absent from the different contesting politicians, a trait that Chavez used to his benefit among the nations poor.