The joy that May Day brings.

The certainty that the province has the conditions for another massive and colorful parade transcended in a meeting where it was estimated that more than 150 thousand matanceros will parade, in a march that will be initiated by the provincial Union of Energy and Mines Workers.

Pedro Rizo, president of the Union of Cuban Journalists in Matanzas, acknowledged the CTC for its support to the National Softball Tournament, to be held in Matanzas.

In a complex context, nothing will be able to block the joy for May Day, World Proletariat Day, assured Osmar Ramírez Ramírez, general secretary of the Provincial Committee of the Cuban Trade Union (CTC).

«There will be a parade. It will be a great march of revolutionary reaffirmation, of rejection of the economic, commercial and financial blockade of the United States against our nation,» Ramirez expressed in a press conference.

«We workers have never failed the homeland. That is why we will fill the squares and streets of the thirteen municipalities, and also Varadero, a tourist destination that gives memorable days for such a significant anniversary».

Ramirez referred to the intense preparatory days promoted by the trade union movement to achieve an optimal May Day, encouraged by the slogan For Cuba, together we create. It is a matter, he emphasized, of greeting the date in the best possible way, which is to comply with the production and services plans.

He raised challenges for the sugar sector and particularly the 16 thousand tons to be milled at the Jesús Sablón Moreno (Rabí) sugar mill, in agriculture, tourism, the oil sector, in electricity generation with the on-line maintenance of the Guiteras thermoelectric power plant and the recent synchronization of the Jovellanos II photovoltaic solar park.

He pointed out the bad moment of the Commerce, Gastronomy and Services sector, with most of the 14 companies with economic losses in this western territory, which implies, he said, a more demanding union to revert this scenario of more expenses than income.

Precisely in the presence of the general secretaries of each of the 15 provincial unions, Ramírez informed the journalists about a program of activities for May Day, which began with the reading of the call in the labor collectives.

The voluntary work on Saturdays and Sundays, and the changes of work during the week, steal the limelight in actions where the meeting with the Heroes of Labor of the Republic of Cuba and the cultural gala are already common.

Ariannis Rodriguez, member of the provincial Secretariat of the CTC, announced the relevant act of decoration, the most crowded in recent times if it is taken into account that 82 will be the stimulated, to which are added the collectives that will attend the national act in Havana.

Rodriguez also referred to the gift for May Day, which means the obtaining of the highest category of National Vanguard by 35 collectives from Matanzas, the highest number in the last five years. «The call is to prepare good acts, where the workers who contributed the most to this triumph are recognized», he exhorted.

The certainty that the province has the conditions to have another massive and colorful parade transcended in a meeting where it was estimated that more than 150 thousand matanceros will parade, in a march that will be initiated by the provincial Union of Energy and Mines Workers.

Photos by the author.

Written by Eva Luna Acosta Armiñán.