A Cuban teacher from Matanzas publicly denounced that the regime eliminated the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment (CITMA) without consulting the workers in the sector, who would not agree with the decision.
Luis Ernesto Martínez González, a graduate of ISP Juan Marinello and resident of Matanzas, posted a direct critique on Facebook on Wednesday regarding the government's decision to dissolve CITMA, which was approved by the National Assembly on Thursday.
“To create the Science Law, we were consulted multiple times. To eliminate CITMA, not a single written question,” wrote the educator, accompanying his message with silence emojis that reinforced his denunciation of censorship.
Martínez González, also an employee of CITMA in his province, stated in another post, according to his Facebook profile, that the exclusion was not accidental: "The only assessment made to eliminate CITMA showed that we would not agree. That’s why they didn’t consult us."
The professor framed the dissolution of the ministry within a pattern of three government decisions made without consultation with those affected over more than a decade.
In 2014, he recounted, he was told that "the best thing" was to integrate the pedagogical universities into the Ministry of Higher Education to create a "new university": "They didn't ask for my opinion. Nor did they ask many others." In 2022, he was forced to leave the premises of the Pedagogical University to move to the central headquarters of the University of Matanzas, with the same reasoning and the same lack of consultation. And in 2026, the story repeats itself with CITMA.
"I'll just say one thing: No, thank you," the teacher concluded.
Martínez González also emphasized the speed with which the regime executes dismantling compared to the slowness with which it opens new spaces: "It was on May 8, less than three months ago, that we were informed that CITMA would be dissolved as a ministry. Its death certificate has already been signed. To destroy, the measures are accelerated and urgent. To open channels and create new spaces, they are morbidly delayed and slow without justification."
As an additional point, the professor recalled that President Miguel Díaz-Canel had celebrated in April 2024 the 30th anniversary of the ministry, mentioning on social media its establishment as an initiative of the "Commander in Chief" during the Special Period. Two years later, that same organization was dissolved without consulting its employees.
The voice of Martínez González is not the only one. Dr. Enrique Diego Arango Arias, head of the National Seismological Service, described the measure as a "serious mistake" and a "sad day for Cuban science," claiming that "this decision, made without consultation and behind our backs, has hurt many workers at CITMA as if we were mere pieces in a game."
Arango also warned that "the vast majority of the workers in our organization are not even aware that CITMA is disappearing," and noted that he had sent his objections to the National Assembly without receiving a response.
The National Assembly approved on Thursday the Law on the Organization of the Central State Administration, which reduces the central government agencies from 27 to 21 and redistributes the functions of CITMA among two new ministries: the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, and the Ministry of Environment, Habitat and Hydraulic Resources.
The Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz also announced the elimination of more than 92,000 positions in four ministries as part of the restructuring, while the Secretary of the Council of Ministers presented the reform as a process to "reorganize, resize, and enhance" the state apparatus.
Martínez González's post generated significant resonance on social media. One user encapsulated the sentiment of many: "The Cuban chainsaw has finished off the Citma. Another blackout, this time for science." Another highlighted the root of the issue: "For those in power, the enemy—now and always—is critical thinking, reason, and science." A third voice pointed out the futility of any consultation within the Cuban system: "Consult you for what? We already have an Assembly that will vote unanimously."
The ministries will have up to a year to complete the organizational changes following the official publication of the law, as stated in the approved regulation itself.
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