01-10-06,10:22am
First years of the revolution took the names of great strategic tasks of those foundational times, where everything was new and mainly heroic. This is how we had in 1959 “The Year of the Liberation” followed by others such as the “ Agrarian Reform” of the “Education” and “of Planning” or of the “Agriculture” the year mentioned by Che’s farewell letter in 1965 or of the “Decisive Effort” and of the “Ten Millions.”
Afterwards, the revolutionary process’s own experience turned our recent or past history into an inspiration motive to name each term accordingly with relevant deeds such as Communist Party’s Congresses, the Eleventh Youth Festival and more recently the one dedicated to the Five Heroes or this 2005 called ALBA or Bolivarian Alternative.
There were moments at the beginning of the 90 decade where the fact of being able to claim every twelve months we were going through the year 32, 33, 34, 35 and 36 “of the Revolution” was by itself a glorious deed, due to the difficult circumstances imposed by the special period and in spite of which, the Cuban people was able to overcome such a situation.
But now these annual names go back to the idea of great goals. That is why it has a great symbolic value that the coming year 2006, “Year of the Energy Revolution”, contains such a will of a transcendental task for all Cubans and the world, thus setting a kind of a new start , of a new foundation of the legendary capacity of making utopias come true.
Therefore, the announced economic growth of 11,8% for the year about to end is only the tip of the iceberg or first results of a revolutionary and integral strategy whose main keys showed up within debates during the last ordinary period of sessions of the Cuban Parliament.
Right in the core of this conception, there is the decision of achieving an economic invulnerability, with the conditions of a socialist system, in which the growth of the gross domestic product is only the result and most important is not how much we grow but how we do it.
Among premises to achieve this sustainability of the economic growth there is the already mentioned energy revolution that was explained by President Fidel Castro that will surely grant four times the capacity of electric generation, the country is going to need.
Another element linked to energy, but not having a major range is energy saving, as one of the main economic potentials with which we count nowadays.
Furthermore, this item includes the rational use of fuels and a greater use of renewable sources of energy, the programs for the efficient use of water and the optimum exploitation of the limited financial and material resources right from a well planned and centralized economy.
Besides this theme, there is a present offensive against crime and corruption, battle to reach its climax very soon according to president Fidel’s statements. Other serious damages caused by this harmful phenomena, has taken place in the ideological field which can even endanger the revolution’s survival, but its economic implication should also be considered if we analyze that control of theft and waste will contribute with some 300 millions of USD for the year 2006, all this is according with estimations already made.
Moreover, it is clear that human resources created by the revolution, are a great potential for the social project towards a through transformation into a service and knowledge economy.
The example of widest repercussion are huge perspectives led by the noble and outstanding Cuban health care program for Latin America, the Caribbean and other regions where the dream of giving back the sight to millions of poor people all over the world is a true evidence of higher priorities of Socialism over Capitalism.
In fact this is really as Osvaldo Martínez, President of the Economy Commission of the Cuban Parliament, said: “A true development dedicated to the whole people.”
This aspect was evident in parliament debates that showed how the energy revolution; saving; the struggle against crime and corruption; the creation of human resources and knowledge based service will influence more and more in the progressive improvement of life quality of the Cuban family.
One of these examples is the replacement and sale of lights and house kits for our homes, also the addition of new rationed products and the increase of other branches for our basic food basket and increase of wages and pensions during this year 2005.
According to Francisco Soberón, President of the Central Bank, such measures on wages will start the rescue of a socialist distribution formula of every one according to its capacity, of everyone according with its work as to achieve a gradual decrease of inequities showed up in the special period. A direct link will be established between quality and quantity of goods and services produced by everyone and money received in payment for work, are all resources which should activate the productive sources.
And this last step is really the closing event of an effort that might possibly create the wished invulnerability, whose conquest is not and will not be free of difficulties and contradictions but the revolution’s economic counteroffensive has already started.
