 President Chávez was informed about the incident, saying his detention was a provocation from "the devil" and stated that the authorities detained Maduro over his links to a failed coup in 1992, a charge that President Chavez denied.Prior to his appointment to the vice presidency, Maduro had already been chosen by Chávez in 2011 to succeed him in the presidency if he were to die from cancer.This choice was made due to Maduro's loyalty to Chávez and because of his good relations with other chavista hard-liners such as Elías Jaua, former minister Jesse Chacón and Jorge Rodríguez.