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In an unusual display of frankness, the Communist Party of Cuba itself acknowledged the severe decline in life in Havana.
In a report released by the Presidency of the Republic following the Extraordinary Plenary of the Provincial Committee of the Party, the regime acknowledged that basic services, housing, and infrastructure in the capital are at critical levels.
According to the official text, public transportation barely covers 42% of the planned targets, the construction of housing dropped to 41%, and overall physical production was halved.
Infant mortality, a historically manipulated indicator to uphold the myth of “social achievements,” reached 14 per every thousand live births, the highest rate in the country.
The document, signed by the official journalist René Tamayo León, aimed to present the "efforts of the Party" in light of the supposed "imperial siege," but ended up revealing the urban and economic collapse that the capital is experiencing.
In a passage of the text, it was also acknowledged that, despite the strong institutional campaigns and repeated threats from the authorities, “there was no progress in debris collection, nor in pruning, nor in the recovery of recyclable waste,” and that the water supply was affected by between 3 and 20% throughout the year.
These figures paint a devastating picture: entire neighborhoods without transportation services, streets turned into dumps, and families going days without running water. All the while, state media celebrate "review meetings" and promise "energy transformations" that never materialize.
Havana, a traditional showcase of power and a symbol of the revolutionary project, has become the most visible representation of the system's failure. The ruins of buildings, the constant collapses, and the accumulated garbage stand in stark contrast to the propaganda that insists on speaking of "victories."
Despite the implicit acknowledgment of the crisis, the official statement asserts that the province "was in surplus" and "exceeded net sales and business profits."
Economists consulted by CiberCuba described those statements as "accounting fiction," as they do not reflect the actual collapse of production or the widespread impoverishment of the population.
While the government blames U.S. sanctions, it avoids mentioning corruption, resource diversion, and military control over the economy.
However, the regime's triumphalist rhetoric increasingly clashes with the data from its own press: the capital of all Cubans is in ruins, and even the propaganda apparatus can no longer disguise it.
A city in ruins: Garbage, blackouts, and shortages suffocate Havana
The official recognition of the deterioration in Havana coincides with a series of reports confirming the total collapse of public services in the Cuban capital.
In recent weeks, the lack of fuel has plunged the city further into chaos. Entire streets are covered by mountains of garbage, with municipal services unable to remove them due to the suspension of garbage trucks.
Residents of Cerro, Centro Habana, and Diez de Octubre have reported the proliferation of pests and unpleasant odors in residential and tourist areas, while authorities attempt to justify the situation with the "energy and logistical deficit" resulting from the blockade.
At the same time, the capital remains dark for most of the day. Massive blackouts are lasting over 18 hours in some municipalities, and the country is experiencing an electricity deficit of more than 2,000 megawatts, according to data confirmed by the Electric Union itself.
In emblematic neighborhoods like El Vedado, the situation is particularly symbolic: G Street, once a brightly lit boulevard, is plunged into darkness while the López-Calleja Tower—owned by the military conglomerate GAESA—remains lit every night.
The decline has also impacted tourism, one of the few sources of income that the regime is trying to keep afloat. Classic car drivers report a shortage of gasoline, a drop in revenue, and a decrease in the number of visitors, who see a dirty city with no transportation or electricity.
Public figures, such as the comedian Ulises Toirac, have started to openly criticize the government's management, pointing out that blackouts and the lack of fuel "have gotten out of control" and that the country is experiencing "an unsustainable situation for ordinary people."
The outlook confirms that Havana is not only collapsing in terms of statistics, as the Communist Party itself has admitted, but also in the everyday experience of its citizens, suffocated by darkness, trash, and despair.
While the regime repeats slogans about resistance and sovereignty, the reality in the streets of the capital screams the opposite: Cuba is fading, becoming dirty, and crumbling before the eyes of the world.
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