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A broadcaster from Radio 26, the official radio station of the province of Matanzas, posted an unusual message on social media in which she confessed to feeling overwhelmed by the crisis in Cuba and admitted that, for the first time, she is questioning whether it was a mistake not to have emigrated when she had the chance.
The reflection of Iris Castro Gutiérrez, host of the program "Frecuencia Abierta," was shared on Saturday on Facebook, just a few hours after the fourth total collapse of the National Electric System (SEN) in 2026, and has drawn attention for coming from a professional who works in one of the state media outlets.
"Discouraged, with tears in my eyes, I thought and reflected: good heavens, why so many punishments? What was the crime I committed? Was it that I didn’t leave back then? Am I being punished for loving? For not having given up my people and what belongs to me?" she wrote.
In her post, the broadcaster described an everyday scene for millions of Cubans.
He took advantage of a brief return of electricity to cook rice and charge the portable fan, solar lamp, and emergency flashlight.
Afterward, she left the house with two goals: to get the medication she needs to manage her blood pressure and to have a manicure. She achieved neither.
The medication was not available at the store where he intended to purchase it, and the beauty salons he visited only accepted cash, a form of payment that is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain in the country.
"You go out to 'solve' your needs and interests and come back home, saying it in good Cuban style, with your nose down," he recounted.
Upon returning to his apartment, the power outage had returned.
Then, he remembered that during the Special Period he had the opportunity to leave Cuba, but he decided to stay.
"I returned to the 90s, a time when I could have left my country; I had every opportunity, but strong ties held me back: an almost obsessive love for my family, a passion and love for the profession I've practiced since I was young, and my patriotic feelings," he reminisced.
More than three decades later, he acknowledges that he views that decision from a different perspective.
"Without a doubt, never as now... we live today as we never would have imagined, and even less wished for," he added.
A voice from the system that breaks the official narrative
The message takes on special significance due to Castro's position.
Radio 26 is part of the national system of state media, which upholds the official line of the Communist Party and attributes the economic and energy crisis mainly to the U.S. embargo.
In that context, it is quite unusual for a figure associated with the official press to publicly express a level of frustration that leads them to question whether they should have emigrated when they had the chance.
His post coincided with one of the most critical weeks for the Cuban electrical system. On Friday, the country experienced the fourth nationwide blackout of 2026, while Matanzas had up to 87 consecutive hours without electrical service in several municipalities.
The crisis is also impacting access to medications. Official data indicates that in Cuba only about 30% of the essential medicines list is available, a shortage that daily affects patients with chronic illnesses such as hypertension.
Iris Castro's testimony thus adds to the growing expressions of discontent that are emerging even from spaces traditionally associated with the official discourse, at a time when the prolonged economic crisis, blackouts, and the lack of essential goods continue to deteriorate the living conditions of the Cuban population.
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