Venezuela’s President slammed for salsa dancing as country faces crisis

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He’s made fiery speeches. He’s boosted his country’s minimum wage four times this year. And he’s vowed opponents won’t succeed in removing him from power.

Now Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is taking a new tack as he tries to negotiate his way out of a mounting political crisis.

He’s dancing.

Maduro, who’s been in office since 2013 and faces calls for a recall referendum to end his presidency, launched a new radio show Tuesday. Dubbed “La Hora de la Salsa” (Salsa Hour), the program will air daily on weekdays and touch on musical, cultural and political themes, officials said.

As the first episode aired, government officials posted videos and photos on social media, showing Maduro salsa dancing with his wife in the radio studio.

Tareck El Aissami, governor of Venezuela’s Aragua state and a staunch ally of Maduro, said on Twitter that the image sends a clear message: “We are HAPPINESS and REVOLUTION!!”

But the move drew swift criticism from opponents, who flooded social media with their own posts, accusing Maduro of being a dictator who dances while his country crumbles.

“Rich! Maduro dancing salsa, losing time on a radio program and people die without medicines, families search for their daily food in the trash,” one Caracas resident wrote.

Tensions have been mounting in Venezuela, which is edging closer to a breaking point as it faces a recession, soaring food prices and broken hospitals. Opponents have pushed for a recall referendum to remove Maduro from power, but courts shot down the effort last month, alleging voter identity fraud.

An opposition deputy struggles while pro-government supporters force their way to the National Assembly during an extraordinary session called by opposition leaders in Caracas on October 23. The National Assembly has voted to ask Maduro to appear for questioning next week so it can determine whether to recommend he be removed from office by the nation's Supreme Court.

Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro wave flags and shout as they force their way into the National Assembly floor during a meeting of the opposition-led congress in Caracas on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016. The four-hour extraordinary session was interrupted for about 30 minutes after government supporters breached security and threatened lawmakers on the National Assembly floor.

Opposition deputies raise their hands while voting to open a political trial against President Nicolas Maduro. A majority of lawmakers voted in favor of a motion to launch a "political and criminal trial" after his government blocked their drive for a referendum on removing him.

The Vatican's representative, Monsignor Emir Paul Tscherrig, speaks during a meeting in Caracas on October 24.

Supporters of Maduro break the gate and force their way to the National Assembly during an extraordinary session called by opposition leaders. Each side accuses the other of staging a coup in the country, which is in the midst of economic and political strife.

Opponents of President Nicolas Maduro's government, led by Lilian Tintori, wife of imprisoned opposition Leopoldo Lopez, gather to protest the suspension of the recall referendum.

On September 7, the country's opposition called for new nationwide protests.

CNN obtained this photo showing a newborn babies inside cardboard boxes at Domingo Guzmán Lander Hospital in Barcelona, Venezuela. The Venezuelan opposition party Mesa de la Unidad Democratica (MUD), said the photos were snapped by a hospital employee who did not want to be identified. The Social Security Director Carlos Rotondaro responded on Twitter, saying an investigation is being launched and that "in no way will these actions, taken without consultation by a professional of the hospital, be justified."

The dire economic crisis in Venezuela sends thousands of Venezuelans daily across the international border bridge to purchase food, medicine and other desperately needed supplies.

People queue to buy basic food and household items outside a supermarket in Caracas, on September 28.

Patients lie on beds in the emergency room of a hospital in Barquisimeto on Monday, Feb. 22, 2016. In Barquisimeto, the hub of Venezuela's farming heartland, shoppers line up for food, neighborhoods are dark from rolling blackouts and hospitals are so crowded that the sick sometimes share beds.

Venezuelans locked in a crisis

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Maduro met with opposition leaders for the first time in two years on Sunday in talks facilitated by the Vatican and several other parties. But some members of the opposition have refused to participate in the talks, accusing the government of using them to diffuse protests.

Talks are scheduled to resume next week. Meanwhile, Maduro has pinned a post about the salsa show to the top of his Twitter feed.

“I rang in November with joy and dancing a little bit…Nobody will take away our right of happiness,” he wrote. “We are winning.”

CNN’s Julia Jones contributed to this report.