-DATE-
19890717
-YEAR-
1989
-DOCUMENT_TYPE-
-AUTHOR-
-HEADLINE-
Castro Comments on MICONS Report at ANPP
-PLACE-
CARIBBEAN / Cuba
-SOURCE-
Havana Radio Rebelde Network
-REPORT_NBR-
FBIS-LAT-89-137
-REPORT_DATE-
19890719
-HEADER-
BRS Assigned Document Number:    000014176
Report Type:         Daily Report             AFS Number:     FL1807023489
Report Number:       FBIS-LAT-89-137          Report Date:    19 Jul 89
Report Series:       Daily Report             Start Page:     22
Report Division:     CARIBBEAN                End Page:       23
Report Subdivision:  Cuba                     AG File Flag:   
Classification:      UNCLASSIFIED             Language:       Spanish
Document Date:       17 Jul 89
Report Volume:       Wednesday Vol VI No 137

Dissemination:  

City/Source of Document:   Havana Radio Rebelde Network

Report Name:   Latin America

Headline:   Castro Comments on MICONS Report at ANPP

Author(s):   Marta Bares on ANPP session held at Havana's Palace of
Conventions, during ``Exclusivo'' program hosted by Daniel
Torres--live]

Source Line:   FL1807023489 Havana Radio Rebelde Network in Spanish 2306 GMT 17
Jul 89

Subslug:   [Report by Marta Bares on ANPP session held at Havana's Palace of
Conventions, during ``Exclusivo'' program hosted by Daniel
Torres--live]

-TEXT-
FULL TEXT OF ARTICLE:
1.  [Text] [Bares] Good evening, Daniel. Good evening, Cuba. As you have said,
the exchange of opinions on the Ministry of Construction's [MICONS] report to
the National Assembly of the People's Government [ANPP] took up the main part
of the Cuban parliament's 1st day of discussions.

2.  Over 40 reports were given by various delegates in this session, these do
not include the statements given by Deputy Fidel Castro. Now we will offer our
listeners some of the opinions given by the commander in chief on the
population's needs and the best way to solve them.

3.  [Begin Castro recording] Once again, I come back to the concept of Santa
Claus and the three kings. People have this view of the Revolution. I have
spoken about this more than once; people ask, and ask, and ask, and ask, and
ask, and they want, want, want, and want. The people want hospitals,
polyclinics, housing, schools, sewers, they want everything. This is true.
However, I remind you of the reality that all of the nation's social
development programs require serious development of economic programs and
serious development of industrial programs.  Not only do we have to attend to
the needs of the people, we have to attend to the needs of agriculture,
[repeats himself] the needs of agriculture, the need to supply the people, and
the needs of industry.  This is not an easy task, it requires much work. Just
the same, when someone says: Build me a sewer [chuckles], we need many things.
We do not just use one worker and one machine; we also need materials to build
that sewer.  I can assure all the deputies that we are concerned about all of
these things and we are doing whatever is possible.

4.  We are trying to work the miracles that are needed to solve many of our
historical problems. We are trying to work miracles that are only possible
through work, miracles that are being shown by some of our construction
workers.  [end recording]

5.  [Bares] Here is the commander in chief on the forming of the contingents
that will finish building the (Isca) and (Cujay), which have been under
construction for the past 20 years.

6.  [Begin Castro recording] In my search for disgraces--I have had to dedicate
part of my life to looking for disgraces--I said: Well, we have made advances
in the construction of this and the other thing, in hundreds of things. What do
we have now? I said: We have the (Isca) and we have the (Cujay). We should
promise to finish them, but then, we should not promise anything to anyone.
This is not a matter of promising, it is a matter of doing. I spoke with
[Esteban] Lazo and I said: [Word indistinct] we have to do something. I think
the only way to finish this shamelessness is to create two contingents.

7.  I do not want many people in the contingent, only 150 or 200 people, but I
want them organized like a contingent.  I then gave him the structure, salary
system, and work system of the contingents. This is how the last two
contingents we established in the nation [words indistinct] which is already
working there as a contingent. I am sure now, that the (Isca) is finally going
to be finished. I have no doubt about this.

8.  We then organized another contingent with the same workers. We said: Those
of you who want to continue as volunteers--these have to be volunteers, to be a
contingent you have to be a volunteer and to belong to a contingent you have to
volunteer--it is not the same thing to organize a new contingent as to get a
group of old construction workers who have built 500,000 [word indistinct] and
organize a contingent. So then, we are organizing a contingent. They are
already working, in both places. I think that finally, with the magic formula
of the contingents, an evil that has lasted for almost 100 years [as heard] has
been solved with a constructive and revolutionary formula.

9.  I said: Let's put our contingents on the budget. This is not a matter of
materials, because we are constantly lacking materials. There is not a single
day that goes by that we do not try to increase production of materials.  There
is not a single day that we do not build a cement factory or something. While
we increase production, there is not a single day that we do not discuss
saving. In cement we have been saving [words indistinct] 300,000.  We have that
here in the Construction Ministry's report.  Close to this is a bigger
disgrace, the glass house. This is a university institution that has been under
construction for over 20 years. We have decided to finish it. I do not know if
[words indistinct] more or less when it will be finished. I do not know how
long we propose to finish it in, I think it is 3 years. In about 3 years we
will also finish the (Cujay). That is also a great disgrace. [end recording]

10.  [Bares] Here is what the commander in chief had to say about repairing
teaching centers:

11.  [Begin Castro recording] Talking about schools, we need to make a brigade
corp to finish the secondary school plans. With respect to maintenance, one of
the most serious problems we have is the secondary schools. Well, the problem
is the secondary schools and rural pre-university schools. Every year a certain
amount of money, a budget, is assigned to this. There are no organized groups
to carry out what I proposed at the meeting I had with the youth leaders. At
this meeting I said there was a need to organize the brigades. I think we could
[words indistinct] Ministry of Education's petition that is gigantic. Their
petition deals with I do not know how many brigades. The Ministry of Education
has a habit of asking for things in large quantities. But well, I asked how
many brigades we had to organize, especially since it [words indistinct] in
main plans. For example, in Jaguey Grande there are 50 or 60 schools.

12.  What I was proposing was to organizing maintenance brigades. These
brigades should then have the material resources directly assigned to them,
instead of having them assigned through the ANPP. Otherwise, they will never
get them. If the material resources are assigned through the ANPP, they are
usually assigned to something else. [end recording]

13.  [Bares] Finally, here are some of Construction Minister Homero Crabb
Valdes' opinions, given especially to ``Exclusivo''.

14.  [Begin Crabb Valdes recording] I think that the entire discussion on the
MICONS report to the ANPP has been very productive. In this discussion, we have
talked about the fundamental problems in the construction sector.  These
opinions are a result of having analyzed the report, as well as the
introductory document. Also, the commission's opinion was very good. We truly
value their opinion and find it very just and very objective. The commission
covered the fundamental problems faced by the MICONS. We have to continue to
work on solving certain aspects that have not yet been solved.

15.  I believe that the deputies have been at a level that is in keeping with
this high-level state organ. They have pointed out the main problems and the
fundamental problems. I think that the commander in chief's opinions on
construction, as always, were very enlightening. His views have helped the
deputies, as well as the MICONS, to understand certain matters. I also believe
his opinions will help the construction workers to continue laboring with
renewed efforts.

16.  I think that regarding future endeavors, the report by the deputies and
the MICONS initial report indicate what path we should take. We should make
intense efforts to solve quality problems, to promote scientific-technical
developments in construction, and at the same time, we should not forget the
essential task of saving resources such as cement, steel, and wood. As the
commander in chief has said, especially in the case of wood, these resources
could become a limiting factor to the entire construction effort being carried
out by our country.

17.  I think that regarding these fundamental aspects, we have to organize the
construction workers in the brigades, contingents, and enterprises. We should
organize all of the nation's construction workers so that we can all produce at
the level that is being asked of us by the people, the Communist Party of Cuba,
and Fidel. [end recording]

18.  [Bares] The MICONS report to the ANPP was unanimously approved.
-END-