Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) and President of the Republic, closed the 11th Plenum of the PCC’s highest governing body, where he emphasized the need for conscious and critical unity to confront the nation’s current challenges.
According to sources from the Presidency, during his address, Díaz-Canel stressed that the immediate work ahead will be intense and ruled out easy solutions, stating that the path forward demands struggle, creativity, and intelligent resistance, with moral strength and the people as inspiration.
In the centennial year of the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, the president called for criticism and self-criticism as the driving force for transformation, with the aim of revolutionizing the Revolution and changing what needs to be changed.
The debates of the Plenum were described by the Head of State as intense, despite their brevity, given the urgent need for economic, structural, and attitudinal transformations in the work of the Party.
The President emphasized the essential link with the people as the source of solutions to the most pressing problems, and affirmed that the Party cannot lead by reports, but rather through direct popular participation.
Referring to the economy, he acknowledged a decline in Gross Domestic Product of more than four percent in the third quarter of the year, accompanied by inflation and difficulties in key sectors, exacerbated by the financial and oil persecution against Cuba.
Díaz-Canel called on leaders to engage with the population in a timely and systematic manner, evaluating decisions and perspectives, and warned of widespread discontent over deficiencies in basic services and social inequalities.
The president denounced the economic and media aggression against Cuba, as well as the new U.S. National Security Strategy, which he described as a rehash of the Monroe Doctrine and the Roosevelt Corollary.
In his address, he expressed gratitude for the national and international solidarity following the impact of Hurricane Melissa and acknowledged the Cuban people’s discipline in the recovery of the affected areas.
Díaz-Canel highlighted the public discussion of the Government Program to correct distortions and revitalize the economy, with an emphasis on guaranteeing daily stability, improving wages, and ensuring access to food and basic services.
The First Secretary of the PCC reiterated that the Revolution guarantees the combination of economic rigor with social justice and reaffirmed the free and high-quality nature of healthcare and education, despite limitations.
In closing, he insisted that the Party’s main strength is unity based on debate, criticism and conscious discipline, and called for building a unity based on truth, participation and mutual trust.
IMAGE CREDIT: ACN | Photo: Taken from the Presidency
[ SOURCE: AGENCIA CUBANA DE NOTICIAS ]
