Since yesterday, Friday, February 2, the news about the “release” of three Cuban ministers has been the talk of news and analysis spaces on social networks.
One of the historical characteristics of Castroism has been and continues to be denying broad and objective information to the population. Far from doing so, the official notes are characterized by language that the reader must try to unravel because of its euphemisms and ambiguity.
That language provokes questions, but, above all—and no matter how much the editors of these official notes try to do their best—inconsistencies. And the recent “release” of ministers is no exception.
The official note published by Cubadebate, the grotto of Castro’s Taliban, reads:
“The Council of State, at the proposal of the President of the Republic and with the prior approval of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, agreed to carry out the following cadre movements:
Release comrade Alejandro Gil Fernández from his responsibilities as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Planning.
To release comrade Rosa Elva Pérez Montoya from the position of Minister of Science, Technology and Environment, a responsibility she has held for more than 11 years.
To release comrade Manuel Santiago Sobrino Martínez from the position of Minister of the Food Industry by renewal.”
And he concludes: “All the comrades released from their respective positions were recognized for their effort and dedication in the performance of such high responsibilities and in the coming days they will be assigned new missions.”
In the case of the Minister of Science, Technology and the Environment, it is inevitable to question why she has been replaced if she has demonstrated “effort and dedication in the performance of such a high responsibility”, a question that becomes more logical if we take into account that Díaz Canel himself has been a public defender of the work of that ministry.
The same cannot be said of Manuel Santiago Sobrino. Not only has he been the subject of memes and criticism in the media for his promotion of the mince of guts and heads of “decrepit” hens – I’m using his own language – but his management at the head of that ministry did not offer a positive balance.
But without a doubt, the most significant case of the three and the one that has aroused the most interest is that of the Minister of Economy and Planning, Alejandro Gil.
Speaking about the dismissal of this minister from the headquarters of the Assembly of the Cuban Resistance, Cuban exile Luis Zúñiga was very accurate in expressing that this change reveals the disaster that exists in Cuba today, not only in the economy and finances but also in the political structure of the dictatorship. According to Zúñiga, Díaz Canel has sought a scapegoat to bear the responsibility, a method that the dictatorship has constantly used to hide the fact that the real culprits are all those who defend a totally inoperative political system and economic and social structure whose only achievement has been to plunge Cuba into the deepest and most prolonged of its crises.
That same Politburo of the Cuban Communist Party that has just approved the “release” of Minister Gil was the same one that met in December and approved its package of measures. It was the same Politburo that convened the Plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party held in December, a meeting at which several members of that party body defended the need for the measures. Then the meeting of the National Assembly of People’s Power (ANPP) was held and as usual, the measures were approved unanimously. So, is Gil solely responsible for the deep popular rejection that his neoliberal package has provoked? Obviously not. Alejandro Gil was, along with his team of advisors, the one who gave shape to the instructions emanating from the Political Bureau. He then presented his project and it was approved by the Political Bureau, the Central Committee, the ANPP and publicly defended even by the president of the country. So it must be assumed, logically, that the Cuban people would welcome with extraordinary pleasure all these social parasites who fleece them and live with their backs turned to their sufferings, “liberating themselves” so as not to continue prolonging the suffering of the homeland.
Although the level of cynicism reached by Castroism is not surprising, it continues to offend the intelligence of Cubans. Without any shame or respect for the people who lead, on February 1 it was announced the postponement of the increase in fuel prices “due to a cyberattack on the computer systems” that guarantee their online marketing. A few hours later, the Minister of Transport announced that the application of the new fares to the prices of public passenger transport was also postponed. The new prices of the Cubana de Aviación company reflect an increase ranging from the current 300 pesos to 1,706 pesos – in the case of Havana-Nueva Gerona flights – and up to 4,350 pesos in the case of Havana-Baracoa flights, which until now cost $1,350 pesos. To give you an idea of what this price increase represents, we remember that pensions and the average salary in Cuba are around $1,600 and $4,000 pesos, respectively. In the case of interprovincial transport, the new prices are close to three times the current price.
The truth is that it was not the cyber attack – supposed or real, because Western Union suspended the sending of remittances due to deficiencies detected in the Cuban computer systems – that caused the postponement of the application of the package of neoliberal measures approved with great fanfare and servility last December, but the deep revulsion it provoked among Cubans, including several protests by private carriers and many more on social media.
In Cuba there is a lack of electricity generation, serious deficiencies in transportation, education, public health services and in the sale of adequate food to the population. There are still more than two million Cubans who have not received the food book due to delays in its preparation and they are not even guaranteed the few pounds of sugar that they are sold. A part of that sugar has to be bought from France because Cuba, once the leading producer of sugar cane, does not produce enough for deliveries of the basic basket.
Due to the growing discontent of the population, the dictatorship suspended the so-called assemblies of accountability of the People’s Power last November and in January of this year announced the maintenance of their suspension until further notice.
The dictatorship knows perfectly well that in addition to the economic, political and social crisis that exists in Cuba, they, those who lead Cubans against their will, are going through an extraordinary crisis of credibility. But in addition to credibility, many years ago they lost their shame, the kind that makes us stand up from our mistakes and humbly recognize that we have made mistakes.
Roberto de Jesús Quiñones Haces
Harrisonburg, VA, February 3, 2024.
(Posted on my blog https://senderodelibertad.com/)