Juan Téllez Rodríguez
LAS TUNAS, April - Public transportation is getting worse by the minute in Vázquez,
Las Tunas province.
On March 27, about 100 people waited to travel to nearby Puerto Padre and
Las Tunas. The usual vehicle, a truck used to transport passengers, had been out
of service for 24 hours. There was no indication that it would be repaired.
"Of course, they are not interested in repairing it because the fare is
in pesos. It it were in dollars, it would be different," said one man.
Private trucks that are used to transport passengers were being used to
transport school children because there was no fuel for the school buses.
At about 8:30 a.m. a bus from Las Tunas to Puerto Padre showed up. People
desperately tried to board, but a voice said, "Only Ponce may get on, the
rest down, down."
The voice belonged to a local official, and Ponce is a delegate of the
Popular Power (the local government) in the area. The bus was only for
government officials.
A woman of about 50 begged to be let on; she had a son in the psychiatric
ward at the hospital in Puerto Padre. Arnoldo Rodríguez, a Vázquez
resident who has a broken arm also asked to be taken to the hospital.
They were both told the bus was not for passengers. The door closed and the
bus left the station swiftly.
Every day one can see scenes like this. Empty buses pass by bus stops where
people wait and wait. They are not passenger buses; they are only for the
officials, who don't have to suffer the consequences of their decisions.
Versión original
en español
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