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The First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), Miguel Díaz-Canel, stated today that this political organization must transform itself in order not to hold back the country; however, his words contrasted with a wave of citizen criticism denouncing inertia, privileges, and disconnection from daily reality.
During the XI Plenary of the Central Committee of the PCC, held this Saturday in Havana and via videoconference, the current leader assured that under the current conditions, bureaucratism, formalism, and inertia can no longer serve as brakes.
From the perspective of party work, he maintained that it is essential to "change everything that needs to be changed" and to strengthen mechanisms of control and accountability across all areas of society, which emerged in some excerpts of his remarks to the participants, published on the Facebook profile of the PCC.
The president stated that, without a different way of operating within the Party, the discussions in the Plenary would end up as "empty words."
In that context, he reiterated the idea that, as the only legal party, it must also be “the most democratic” and advocated for greater popular participation, continuous engagement with the citizenry, and increased accountability and transparency in the performance of its leaders.
Díaz-Canel reiterated the importance of "unity" as a guarantee of the country's independence and sovereignty, and called for intensifying the ideological, cultural, and communications battle against what he described as an economic and media war.
He affirmed that resisting those pressures is a daily victory and praised the Cuban people's ability to endure years of hardships.
However, the official statement generated a predominantly critical reaction on social media.
Comments published following the dissemination of the message challenged the repetition of promises for change since 1959 without visible results, the lack of austerity and altruism among leaders, and the gap between power and the actual living conditions of the population.
Several users pointed out that calls for democracy and participation feel hollow in a context of a single-party system and prolonged crisis, while others directly blamed the PCC for poverty, scarcity, and mass emigration.
Critiques of the privileges of the ruling elite, the absence of blackouts and shortages in the lives of the officials, and the lack of concrete solutions dominated the discussion.
The contrast between the official emphasis on unity, resistance, and the epic, and the tone of frustration expressed by many citizens, once again highlighted the gap between the discourse of power and social perception amidst one of the worst crises the country is experiencing.
The XI Plenary of the Central Committee of the PCC will only take place this Saturday via videoconference, following a decision by the Political Bureau prompted by the severe health crisis and fuel shortages the country is experiencing.
During the day, the party leadership promoted Army Corps General Roberto Legrá Sotolongo, the First Deputy Minister and Head of the General Staff of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) since 2021, as a member of the Political Bureau of the PCC.
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