We remember today a sad day in Cuban history:
“On February 16, 1959, Fidel Castro is sworn in as prime minister of Cuba after leading a guerrilla campaign that forced right-wing dictator Fulgencio Batista into exile.
Castro, who became commander in chief of Cuba’s armed forces after Batista was ousted on January 1, replaced the more moderate Miro Cardona as head of the country’s new provisional government.”
It was a sad day for two reasons:
1) There was no legal rationale for it. Castro was never elected. It would have made more sense to restore the 1940 Constitituion and then hold elections. Perphaps Castro would have won given his immense popular appeal but there are no guarantees.
2) Castro learned that day that he was “la ley” or the law. He immediately governed with a demagogic tone and delayed elections until he declared himself a Marxist Lennist in 1961. His “appointment” to Prime Minister also cemented “the cult of personality” that eventually destroyed the Cuba of our parents and grandparents.
Yes, a very sad day.