Venezuelan army is Chavist, President Chávez proclaims

"The Armed Force is Chavist. The Armed Force has Chávez in its heart and Chávez has the Armed Force in his heart and soul," ejaculated President Hugo Chávez in a nationwide mandatory broadcast on all free-to-air TV and radio networks. The president delivered a speech to celebrate the 13th anniversary of his rise to power.

Chávez showed up in a rally in Caracas neighborhood of Catia and referred to upcoming presidential elections. In his view, it is impossible to remove all traces of Chavezism, Bolivarianism and patriotism from the National Armed Force.

To his mind, the weapons needed to defend the Bolivarian Revolution are in the right hands: the officers of the National Armed Forces, state-run news agency AVN reported.

Chávez also ordered Minister of Interior and Justice Tareck El Aissami to launch an inquest into an irregular situation occurred several days ago involving a series of photographs taken in the 23 de Enero neighborhood (west Caracas). The pictures, posted on the web, show a group of children holding assault rifles.

The president suspected that the publication of those images could be related to a smear campaign from opposition sectors. He suggested that some pro-government groups, such as La Piedrita, have been infiltrated by the CIA.