Marpessa Portal Devilliers, General Director of Merchandise Sales at the Ministry of Domestic Trade (MINCIN), stated that the donations received by Cuba "cannot be sold" and that there are strict controls in place to prevent that.
During an intervention on the state channel Canal Caribe, the official stated that the donated products have a specific destination and that their distribution is subject to control mechanisms "up to the final consumer."
"Donations cannot be commercialized; therefore, they have a designated purpose and there are strict control mechanisms in place until the final consumer of the resource," he stated.
According to Portal Devilliers, the establishments that provide these products maintain an administrative record of the deliveries, and the consumer is also reflected in the supply booklet, which he stated remains “a fundamental tool” for controlling the distribution of both donated products and the basic food basket.
In the face of possible irregularities, the official called for citizen vigilance. "In the event of any violation, we appeal to popular oversight, to citizen reporting," she stated, while mentioning institutional mechanisms to "restore legality" in the event that deviations are detected.
The statements come amid the controversy generated by a report by the Mexican channel TV Azteca, which documented with cameras the presence of products sent as humanitarian aid from Mexico in state-run stores in Cuba that sell for dollars.
The report showcased, among other examples, the so-called "well-being bean" — part of the Mexican aid — offered in TRD Caribe stores, affiliated with the military business system, at $2.97 for half a kilogram or up to $43 for 30-kilogram bags.
Testimonies collected by the media stated that many citizens had not received these food supplies through the bodegas. Some residents even claimed that after the arrival of ships bringing aid to the island, stores that had previously been nearly empty began selling products of Mexican origin.
The Cuban ambassador in Mexico, Eugenio Martínez Enríquez, rejected these allegations and accused the Mexican media of spreading “lies and misinformation”. According to the diplomat, the products appearing in stores would correspond to commercial imports made by Cuban companies and not to donations.
In response, TV Azteca defended its investigation. “No one told us, no one said: we were there, we documented with cameras what people experience”, the channel wrote on its social media, claiming that its work shows “supports sold in dollars and a suffering people.”
In his television appearance, Portal Devilliers also acknowledged that donations are insufficient for the entire Cuban population. He explained that to distribute just one pound of any product to each citizen of the country, more than 4,500 tons would be needed.
For this reason, he noted, the received food is distributed prioritizing sectors considered vulnerable, such as pregnant women, underweight children, and people in vulnerable situations.
Among the products currently in distribution, she mentioned beans recently shipped from Mexico, powdered milk intended for children aged one to six, and rice delivered with support from the World Food Programme (WFP) in various provinces.
The official also expressed gratitude to the countries and organizations that have provided assistance to the island and recognized the efforts of workers in the trade system and transporters for delivering resources to the population amid the economic crisis the country is experiencing.
While the Cuban government insists that donations are distributed for free, the controversy remains unresolved, and allegations regarding the possible sale of that aid continue to fuel the debate both on the island and beyond.
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