From our Bureau of Truly Ginormous Lies with some assistance from our Bureau of Impending Doom
Ha! Castro, Inc. has promised to haul away all of Havana’s trash heaps! Yes, those mountains of trash that have been accumulating for months and months are all going to suddenly disappear. Wow. Let’s see what happens. Wink, wink, cough . . . Yes, Castro, Inc. has truly surpassed its own record for lying . . .
Loosely translated from CubitaNow
While the Cuban leader Diaz-Canel uses television to brazenly claim that everything was ready to clean up the city in preparation for Hurricane Rafael, the corners of capital municipalities as dramatically affected as Centro Habana and Cerro reveal the reality behind his deceptive words. The photos taken today [see above] bear witness to this. Two are from different corners in El Cerro, and another is from the intersection of Reina and Galiano streets in Centro Habana.
In other parts of the city, the situation is equally critical. In the Diez de Octubre municipality, residents report piles of garbage in the streets, obstructing passage and creating an unhealthy environment. In the Luyanó neighborhood, the situation is similar, with heaps of rubble and trash piling up on the sidewalks, despite authorities’ promises of prompt cleaning.
In Old Havana, tourists and locals alike face the sight and smell of uncollected garbage accumulating on street corners and near historical sites. Local shopkeepers complain that the lack of cleanliness negatively impacts their businesses, driving visitors away.
Additionally, in the Marianao municipality, residents report problems with the sewage system, which leads to wastewater flooding the streets during rains, worsening hygiene issues and increasing the risk of disease.
These situations paint a very different picture from the one presented by the government in the media, demonstrating that the promised measures have not been adequately implemented and that conditions in many neighborhoods of Havana remain deplorable.