On Sunday, the pro-government singer-songwriter Raúl Torres took to Facebook to share a lengthy post, calling on Cuban leaders to engage more directly with the everyday struggles of the populace. While counting small denomination bills on a table, he highlighted the urgency of the banking crisis, stating, "Today, when I found out that the bank only gives out 500 pesos per customer, I felt a lump in my throat. It's not resentment, it's pain."
Torres' post, shared a day after the fifth anniversary of July 11, 2021, intertwines a longing for Fidel Castro's era, kitschy lyricism, and a subtle critique of the bureaucracy, all while remaining firmly within the revolutionary framework he has long defended as a cultural spokesperson for the regime.
Contradictory Message
At the core of Torres' post lies an apparent contradiction. He urges leaders to "descend into the inferno of daily life and feel in their own bones what the elders experience when they can't make ends meet, the father who can't buy milk, the young person staring at the Malecón wondering if there's a future beyond." Yet, in a postscript, he ardently defends those same leaders: "All leaders are as burdened with water and electricity issues as any of us; that's a fact, I've seen it."
This paradoxical stance is further reinforced when Torres ends his message by praising "DC" — Miguel Díaz-Canel — as a model of an active leader who "legitimizes the commander's legacy," undercutting any perception of systemic criticism.
A Nostalgic Argument
The tone of his message swings between demand and reverent nostalgia for Fidel Castro. Torres recalls an image of Castro in the Sierra Maestra sharing a plate of rice with a soldier, using it as a basis for his argument: the failure of current leaders is not rooted in the system but in their failure to emulate that example. "We all miss Fidel," he writes, "and I miss him because he didn't wait for reports at a desk; he went."
Current Financial Crisis
The financial crisis that prompted Torres' post is both real and severe. In June 2026, Havana's Metropolitan Bank reduced the withdrawal limit from 5,000 to 3,000 pesos per transaction, and many branches only dispense 500 pesos once a week. That same month, Granma's government admitted it lacked cash to pay pensions for over 111,000 retirees. Over half of Havana's ATMs were non-functional in May 2026.
Torres suggests vague solutions akin to his problem diagnosis: "If there's no money, distribute shopping vouchers, bonds, something! Let's intervene with the hoarders of bills." He adds, "I'm not an economist; I just ask for urgent solutions." The underlying cause — 67 years of communist dictatorship — is conspicuously absent from his narrative, although the "blockade" is mentioned.
Defensive Stance
Additionally, the singer threatens to delete comments questioning the leaders' privileges, labeling such remarks as "traitorous." Torres, who in 2021 released "Patria o Muerte por la Vida" as a pro-government response to the dissident anthem "Patria y Vida" — a song that amassed 48,135 dislikes against 4,500 likes on YouTube — and who has publicly declared that in Cuba "those in power do not enrich themselves," now implores those same leaders to act with greater urgency.
Descemer Bueno aptly captured Torres' role in February 2021: "What's Raúl Torres, the dictatorship's jester, going to say?" Five years later, Torres continues to provide the same answer: to criticize with the language of denunciation while simultaneously defending with the language of loyalty, all within the same text, seemingly without contradiction.
Understanding Cuba's Banking Crisis
Why is the banking crisis in Cuba significant?
The banking crisis in Cuba is significant because it reflects the deeper economic struggles faced by the country, including cash shortages and insufficient financial infrastructure, which impact both individuals and businesses.
What are the proposed solutions to the banking crisis?
Raúl Torres suggests issuing shopping vouchers or bonds as a temporary measure to alleviate the cash shortage, although these solutions lack specificity and do not address the underlying systemic issues.