CARACAS, Feb 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Venezuelan opposition leader Juan
Guaido’s latest Instagram selfie got over half a million likes. Even his dog
has nearly 30,000 followers.
President Nicolas Maduro might have dismissed the 35-year-old as a “kid
playing politics” — but experts say his millennial status could give him an
edge over the middle-aged socialist leader.
“I’m going to take a selfie so that they can see your faces … I want
them to see the face of hope and joy,” Guaido said during Tuesday’s mass
protest, setting off a huge cheer from supporters waving Venezuelan flags.
The self-proclaimed acting president was hardly known before the turn of
the year. But with three million Instagram followers and 1.2 million on
Twitter — a figure that quadrupled in less than a month — Guaido is a firm
Venezuelan celebrity.
During his rallies, Guaido seems like a rockstar. Fans follow him looking
for selfies, or to hug, greet or even just touch him.
Slick, smooth, and a dashing young dad, his image couldn’t be further
removed from the portly mustachioed figure of 56-year-old Maduro.
Maduro is also very active on social media.
Maduro’s government accuses Guaido of being a puppet to Washington — but the opposition leader has quickly eclipsed his party’s leader Leopoldo Lopez,who has been under house arrest since 2017.
Almost always dressed in a smart suit — in contrast to Maduro’s wardrobe
of military fatigues, shell suits and sometimes bright red shirts — Guaido
always gives speeches or interviews next to the Venezuelan flag, which his
supporters carry everywhere.
He also regularly travels to rallies by motorcycle, as he did on Tuesday.
When he took over as president of the National Assembly — the one of
Venezuela’s five government branches controlled by the opposition — on
January 5, he stepped up to the podium with his wife Fabiana Rosales and
their 20-month-old daughter.
He looked decidedly presidential: some have even compared him to former US president Barack Obama due to his lean physique, short dark hair and sharp dress sense.
Sources close to Guaido’s party said he took lessons to improve his
elocution, image and mannerisms, having been little more than a talking
statue only several months earlier.
Maduro — like Chavez — is known for his lengthy bombastic rhetoric,
although he often regurgitates stock phrases and ideas. — NNN-AGENCIES
