Fernando Damaso, 12 December 2017 — Attuned to the recently concluded so-called “general elections,” which did not really interest anyone or represent any change in the political life of the country, different articles have appeared in the written press comparing these elections with those held in Cuba during the era of the Republic, as well as others that continue to be carried out in most democratic countries. Among other points of discord, one article compares the candidates of then and now.
The article asserts that candidates of that time were corrupt and opportunistic and that they did not represent citizens, dedicating themselves to getting rich at the expense of the State’s resources. What if they did!
However, they all had a full name, a record of their service, proposals for the government and followers. The ones we have now are totally gray, lack names and surnames, are only known in their own homes, if at all, at lunch or dinner time, they lack a record of service, have no proposals and no followers. They are, in short, simple strangers, who pass through their offices without sorrow or glory, they agree unanimously and are lost, when they leave, among the population.
The article also says that the bourgeoisie and the wealthy were criminals, and that they had obtained their riches by exploiting the workers and the peasants.
Before these assertions some questions arise: Who built our towns and cities? Who developed the country? Who built all the valuable things we have today? We must assume that it was not the workers or the peasants who were exploited.
If everything happened that way when everyone was bad, why, now that everyone is good, does nothing work and the country, instead of advancing, has retreated?
Perhaps we can find in this trend the current reluctance and apathy of most Cubans. We have stopped believing in the storytellers and their stories.
Translated by Alberto
