Elderly Tyrant Raul Castro Pounds Table in Anger at Cuban Communists’ Incompetence

Nonagenarian communist dictator of Cuba Raúl Castro appeared visibly upset at a recent Communist Party meeting, slamming his fist on a table in frustration at his officials’ incompetence, Cuban-focused outlets reported on Thursday.

Castro – who in reality continues to be the true dictator of Cuba since 2016 following the death of his brother, murderous dictator Fidel Castro – “retired” from politics in 2021, installing Miguel Díaz-Canel as the figurehead “president” of Cuba. The “retired” nonagenarian dictator was then “elected” to occupy a seat in the National Assembly in the regime’s sham March 2023 election.

Videos circulating on social media show Castro, 93, participating alongside other lawmakers in a new legislative session of the communist parliament centered around finding “solutions” to the problems caused by more than six decades of disastrous communist policies, which have pushed Cuba to the brink of complete ruin.

In the videos, the visibly upset dictator slammed a table that was in front of him as he ordered his regime underlings, with “hand high and standing, and fists clenched, to face the problems with depth.”

Cuban outlets reported on Thursday that Castro has increased his number of public appearances after rumors circulated in recent months that his health was waning or that he had died. Thursday’s reports suggest that Castro’s increased participation in official events alongside other members of his regime’s top brass seeks to send a “message of continuity and stability” as Cuba’s Communist Party undergoes a grave crisis.

In addition to his participation at the Cuban parliament, Castro reportedly attended other public events throughout the week, including a meeting with the “Cuban Five,” a group of spies who infiltrated the Cuban exile community in the United States and are widely considered responsible for providing information to the Castro regime that led to its killing of four Americans in 1996.

The meeting between the Cuban dictator and the communist spies occurred as the Castro regime celebrated the tenth anniversary of the return of the spies to Cuba within the framework of the “Cuban Thaw,” a series of policies enacted by former U.S. President Barack Obama granting significant concessions to the Cuban communists.

During his participation at the communist parliamentary sessions, Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero stated that it is “shameful” that Cuba — a sugarcane powerhouse before communism ruined its flagship industry — now has to import sugar. He did not, however, attribute any responsibility for the decline of Cuba’s sugarcane industry to the disastrous policies of the Castro regime.

“The army general [Raul Castro] told us that it would be a shame to have to import sugar, and we are going through that shame,” Marrero said, admitting difficulties in the current harvest season due to persisting “structural problems,” which hinder any possibility of immediate recovery.

“It is true that the lack of electricity and fuel has a very big impact on the process. However, a group of indications have been given to straighten out this harvest and maximize the results,” he continued.

According to Cuban state media, the communist lawmakers will wrap up the week-long parliamentary sessions on Friday before the Castro regime holds a “march of the combatant people” in front of the U.S. embassy in Havana in the afternoon to demand the United States end its “embargo” on Cuba and Cuba’s removal from the United States’ list of States Sponsors of Terrorism.

While the nonagenarian communist dictator is reportedly slated to participate in Friday’s parliamentary session, it remains unclear at press time if he will participate in his regime’s anti-U.S. rally.

Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.