The spectacular police deployment which took place at the beginning of April in Jagüey Grande, as a result of which the owners of two medium and small businesses (MSMEs) have been arrested and are under investigation, continues to generate concern and rumors among local residents.
The operation carried out with a large number of police and investigators from the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) continues to be a mystery that worries the people of Jagüey. In social networks,There are many who wonder what motivated the arrest of the owner of the Mipyme 'Tres Hermanos Tabares' (THT), as well as the confiscation of his merchandise.
This Sunday, the group administratorFacebook 'Yo amo Jagüey' shared a radio interview conducted withEdel Tabares Álvarez before his arrest. In it, the owner of THT was portrayed as an example of an entrepreneur, committed not only to the success of his company, but to the well-being of his community.
Made by the journalist from JagüeyLuis Rodríguez Ruballo for the stationRadio Progress In February, the interview exalted the figure of Tabares Álvarez as a businessman concerned about “helping the Cuban family.”
Despite residing in Havana, the owner of the THT Mipyme operated in Jagüey Grande, the municipality where he is from and where he collaborated in different aid programs for institutions, schools and official events, earning the trust of the authorities and population sympathies.
Among the authorities who praised the social work of Tabares Álvarez was the first secretary of the municipal committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) in Jagüey Grande,Hanny Martínez Martínez.
“The first secretary of the party of this territory told me that you were one of the people she relied on to be able to make a change and revitalize the history of this town, which was quite depressed by the way,” said journalist Rodríguez Ruballo during the interview.
The businessman acknowledged his willingness to support the people of Jagüey Grande, “especially trying to lower the prices of everything that is expensive.”
“The Mipyme supports four places with children with problems, special schools, maternity homes, the ambulant center, especially with the main course. He has painted and repaired eight schools. He has helped with other MSMEs to beautify the environment a little more, painting, rebuilding what can be done,” said the businessman.
Additionally, the owner of THT claimed that they had painted the amphitheater. “It got prettier,” said Tabares Álvarez, adding that “murals have also been made with the revolutionary history of the town, since the mambises.”
“We will continue to support in any way we can”
So that there was no doubt about Tabares Álvarez's commitment to the well-being of his community, the businessman said that they had given up benefits during the Christmas season.
“At the end of the year, the MSME chose not to make profits on three or four containers of chicken. Currently we are missing two or three warehouses [to deliver] imported things. They were given at cost price, and a little cheaper, a package of chicken to each nucleus. At 21,000 cores. Well, the entire municipality!” said the businessman.
During the interview, Tabares Álvarez reaffirmed his pride as a Jagüeyense. "I am from here. Here I collected farms, here I made charcoal. "Here I am, as they say, everyone knows it's like that, here El Cangrejo goes to Havana."
The incomprehensible phrase of the interview, responding to questions about his “company philosophy”, left an enigmatic reference to "El Cangrejo". Tabares Álvarez's response connects with the rumor spread in Jagüey Grande about his friendship and closeness with the dictator's bodyguard grandsonRaul Castro, calledRaúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, but better known as "The Crab".
“I support the people from the heart and because God thanks me. I bought six rubber bands and a battery to activate the milk pipe. Because milk was not reaching all the children of Jagüey. My Mipyme decided to buy and donate that to colleagues,especially the first secretary of the party. So that the children have their liter of milk,” he said.
Conducted just two months before his fall from grace, the interview revealed one of the businessman's future projects:take over the communal services of the municipality.
“That is a project we have, a somewhat ambitious project. We have to sit down with the relevant authorities to see how far our participation goes, and what can be done,” he acknowledged.
Another public-private initiative that the businessman referred to was the so-called “materials yard”, which would seek to support the local government's subsidized housing policy.
“It is a project that we have with the Party. We are currently working on importing cement to help the municipality's subsidized residents build their houses,” he explained.
Finally, Tabares Álvarez said he was happy with his work. “I feel happy because I do it from the heart. Not because no one has imposed it on me, nor because I have asked for anything in return.”
The closing of the interview left a phrase for history. With the clear purpose of contributing to the good image of private activity and businessmen (a policy approved in the Palace and that leaves a trail of praise in the official media), Rodríguez Ruballo wanted to make clear the spirit that animates entrepreneurs.
“Sometimes we are reluctant when we hear about MSMEs, about entrepreneurship. But Carlos Manuel de Céspedes was enterprising when he wanted to defeat the Spanish. Fidel was an entrepreneur when he wanted to make the revolution. And entrepreneurs are all of us who want good for the Cuban family.”
What is happening in Jagüey Grande?
The operation carried out in Jagüey Grande also focused on the Mipyme 'Rápido y Rico', a bar-restaurant in the town, apparently recently opened, where you could enjoy a varied range of leisure and gastronomy.
Reports on social networks indicated that “the reasons for such an operation” were unknown to the neighbors, many of whom expressed their astonishment and disagreement in the Facebook group, indicating that it was one of the few places in the municipality where you could go to eat. or drink, despite their high prices.
According to a publication from the independent mediaThe Watcher of Cuba, among the population it is suspected that the police operation is related to alleged matters ofdrug trafficking and child prostitution.
“The police that arrived from Havana were after drugs and a possible link between the place and child prostitution, but until now there is absolute certainty only with the narcotics, although it is not known if it is the type that is consumed by drugs.” young people in each municipality in the country, the one they call 'The Chemist', or some real hard drug, imported from another place in America," a neighbor told the aforementioned media.
“In Rápido and Rico there were also patrols, anti-drugs dressed in civilian clothes and, according to the neighbors and the municipal government personnel, who observed the operation from their workplace, they are going to confiscate cars and houses from this Papito, of which he has many, due to their links with drugs and child prostitution," he noted.The Watcher of Cuba.
In the same area of speculation, other residents of the town told said media that the THT Mipyme “fell into disgrace, either because of child prostitution, drugs,or for some link with the payment to those who burned down the Pío Cua parador for the second time in a few months, on the road from Jaguey to Playa Girón, whose author is already detained.”
What do you think?
COMMENTFiled in: