Cuban TV Program ‘Con Filo’ Campaigns for the Execution of Ousted Economy Minister Alejandro Gil

14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 14 March 2024 —  The most recent edition of the Cuban TV Con Filo* program has touched on “a slaughter” against Cuba’s ousted Minister of Economy and Planning, Alejandro Gil Fernandez. The most unpopular program on Cuban television began by quoting Che: “this counterrevolutionary must be persecuted and annihilated.” They then established a parallel, not at all subtle, with Arnaldo Ochoa Sánchez, major general and Hero of the Republic of Cuba, executed by firing squad on July 13, 1989. To top it all off, they cited a fragment of a speech by Fidel Castro, also related to the Ochoa case, where the bearded man shouted that, in the name of the martyrs, they were forced to be “severe.”

It must be remembered that the death penalty is still in force in the Cuban Penal Code. The new regulations raised to 24 the number of criminal offenses that could put a citizen before a firing squad. Despite the existing moratorium and the fact that the maximum penalty has not been applied since 2003, there are many enthusiasts who demand that this letter be dusted off and used as a lesson during the current political crisis.

Con Filo also made reference to an article by Luis Toledo Sande published in Cubaperiodistas. Under the title Corruption/corrosion, the ultra-Marxist writer compared Gil to a murderer, called him antisocial and an accomplice of the most bitter enemies of the Revolution.

The man became a magnet of hatred, disaster after disaster

The truth is that almost no one would bother to come out to defend Gil if they decided to put him to death. That the first vice minister knew nothing about economics… who is surprised by that? That he was corrupt… who is surprised by that? That is usually the norm, not the exception. The man became a magnet of hate, disaster after disaster. The regime now needs three things: someone to take all the blame; to demonstrate that their pulse does not tremble to annihilate whenever and wherever; and to throw a piece of meat to the side of the most radical. The pack must continue to appear united.

Anyone who is even remotely attentive to the “debates between revolutionaries” that swarm online knows that there is a heated controversy surrounding private businesses. Reformists defend the idea of ​​expanding this sector, taking the experiences in China and Vietnam as references. In contrast, those who have failed to benefit from a piece of the pie fanatically cling to the communist playbook. The latter camp grudgingly accepts MSMEs, for example, but only as temporary measures and under strict state control.

In the interview he gave to his friend Arleen Rodríguez in October 2023, Díaz-Canel defended himself against the criticism from that side, calling it “offensive.” He stated that these people “were generating distrust and discredit in the Revolution.” His irritation in his gestures and words revealed his tremendous internal anger. To close, making a handsome gesture, he questioned whether this group had what it takes to stay standing. Some of those mentioned, in private conversations, would later speak of ideological softness and go so far as to ask for his head.

Toledo Sande himself, in the article cited above, states: “We must not close our eyes to the evidence that corruption can go beyond the scope of mid-level officials. It can go so far beyond it that it is capable of getting close, not to the knees or shoulders of the nation, but to its head.” Who was Toledo Sande referring to? Obviously, he wasn’t talking about Gil anymore.

Some of those mentioned, in private conversations, would later speak of ideological softness and would go so far as to ask for his head.

Lis Cuesta, Cuba’s first lady (for international tours), or “wife who works at her job” (for domestic matters), recently posted on X a quote from Fidel Castro about difficult times. The now deceased leader had spoken of hesitant, confused, discouraged, cowardly, softened, traitors, deserters. The use of the plural was overwhelming. Cuesta finished off the quote with her own contribution and in capital letters: “In force for everyone.” It is curious that the wife of the nominal head of the State remains completely silent about the rumors of corruption that also circulate about her.

It is also very eloquent that the chancellor himself, Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, succumbed to the temptation of sending messages between the lines. In his X account he posted: “It is clear that the greatest enemy of every revolution is division, that the best ally of the enemies of the people is divisionism.” This is how things are going in the palace.