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More than 2,600 inspections, 1,538 fines, and 162 forced sales of products is the official balance of actions carried out in Guantánamo during the first days of February, as reported by the Provincial Government of the People's Power through the state newspaper Venceremos.
According to the published information, during that period, 2,640 visits were made to establishments and economic actors in the 10 municipalities of the territory. A total of 1,538 violations were detected, which represents an infringement rate of over 58% on most of the days.
The sanctions are primarily based on Decree No. 30 and Decree Law No. 91 (Article 12-j), regulations that penalize the sale of regulated and agreed-upon products above the maximum prices established by the municipal authorities.
Among the products with the highest incidences are those regulated by Resolution 225—frozen chicken, vegetable oil, powdered detergent, chicken picadillo, and sausages—as well as root vegetables and greens with prices set by the Municipal Administrative Councils, including sweet potatoes, pumpkin, malanga, cassava, black beans, plantains, lettuce, tomatoes, and onions.
The official note presents specific examples detected in the city of Guantánamo: tomatoes at 250 pesos when the approved price is 156; lettuce at 100 pesos (approved 50); cabbage at 80 pesos per pound (approved 60); and guava at 50 pesos per pound (approved 23). There was also a report of the sale of 900 ml vegetable oil at 1,300 pesos (approved price: 900) and 500 g detergent at 350 pesos (approved price: 300).
In the transportation sector, fines were imposed on motorcyclists and bici-taxi drivers operating without a Transportation Operating License, as well as on transport providers who charged up to 12 times the agreed fare. On the Felicidad-La Carolina route, charges of 600 pesos per passenger were reported, while only 50 pesos had been approved. As a result, operation and driving licenses were suspended.
In addition, individuals were penalized for engaging in activities without a license, not using the QR code, not depositing cash in the bank, or not using the tax account. In a case deemed particularly serious, a self-employment project was withdrawn due to price violations and threats against inspectors.
The publication of the report sparked extensive discussion on Facebook, visible in the post shared by the official media, where numerous users questioned the scope of the measures.
Among the most frequent comments were those related to the stores that accept foreign currency. "Why don't they go to the dollar stores?" wrote one user. Another pointed out, "Who checks the prices in the USD stores?" while one more comment read: "The highest abusive and speculative prices are in the USD stores; that is not our currency."
Others questioned the effectiveness of the fines. "That doesn't solve any problems," commented one person, while another added, "I don't know where it's going because prices keep rising."
Some users pointed to scarcity as the main cause of the situation. “The problem is not the prices; the problem is that there is nothing,” expressed one commentator. There were also references to current values in the informal market, such as “Serious measures need to be taken because they already have chicken priced at 7,000 pesos,” and “A pound of rice is 500, sugar 400, oil 1,800, and everything is too much for a simple worker.”
In the midst of the debate, others defended the need for harsher penalties against those who raise prices. "Hitting them with a fine of 100,000 for being abusers is draining the life out of ordinary Cubans," wrote one user.
Provincial authorities affirmed that they will continue operations and monitoring of economic activity in the territory.
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