Miguel Díaz-Canel said on Friday that “many” of the more than 11,000 small and medium-sized private companies (SMEs) legalized on the island since 2021 “did not respond to the trust of the State” and assured that, in that case, “law and order” will prevail.
“Subsequent controls have shown that many of these businesses did not respond to the trust of the State with the honesty and transparency that a minimally organized society demands and requires. Consequently, no violator of the tax authorities and of the law in general can question the requirements derived from the analysis of the errors and distortions of the process,” he said, according to appointment of Granma.
️| @DiazCanelB“The moment is very difficult, without a doubt. The people say so and those of us who work to alleviate the impact of these difficulties on everyone’s daily lives confirm it. But the Revolution lives and its enemies know it.”
| https://t.co/b6NV68wU2D
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.#Cuba— Cuban Presidency (@PresidenciaCuba) July 20, 2024
Díaz-Canel stressed that the Government will act against “lack of control, illegalities, tax evasion, speculation and fraud, wherever they come from.”
“As has been said at this time, law and order must prevail if we want all forms of economic management to succeed and be strengthened.” He also clarified that these actions do not mean “a witch hunt against private SMEs.”
Last Wednesday, also in parliament, Prime Minister Manuel Marrero said that the State has lost control of some 2 billion dollars circulating in irregular activities, such as the circuit between the private sector and the informal currency market, which is accessed by individuals – they cannot buy from the State – to be able to import their products.
In this regard, Díaz-Canel criticized that “a good part” of small private companies “have dedicated themselves to the commercialization of imported products that, although they solve some immediate deficiencies of citizens, do not contribute to the development of the country.
“SMEs were conceived as economic actors that complement the state sector, mainly from the production side.”
The existence of Cuban SMEs has not been exempt from controversy. The government has criticized the high prices of their products, while some sectors of the dissident movement abroad have accused their owners of being close to the government and the Communist Party (PCC, the only legal party).
On the other hand, various independent analysts have highlighted that, with mistakes and successes, small private businesses have been able to supply goods that the state market does not provide.
In his speech last Wednesday, Marrero said that SMEs will have to pay import taxes in dollars, and that they will also have to “certify” the “origin of the money” they use to import their products.
With information from Efe.
