At noon on this election Sunday in Ciego de Ávila, the results of the scrutiny were known, endorsed by the Electoral Council in its provincial and national instances: with 99.88 percent of the votes, Alfre Menéndez Pérez was elected Governor, and with 98.11 percent of the valid ballots, in the position of Vice-Governor, Hiorvanys Espinosa Pérez.
This was reported to Invasor by Osvaldo Álvarez Díaz, president of the Provincial Electoral Council, who also referred to the quality of the vote, on a day without incidents and where the election took place as established in the Electoral Law. Of the 534 delegates who had to exercise their right, 531 participated, for 99.49 percent attendance.
Of those 531-deposited ballots, two were blank and none were annulled, so the quality of the vote was estimated at 99.62 percent.
According to Álvarez Díaz, the elected Governor and Vice-Governor will take office for the next five years on June 4. Once this step is completed, the Provincial Council of People's Power is constituted.
Who are the new elected leaders?
Governor Alfre Menéndez Pérez is a Mechanical Engineer by profession; he is 42 years old and is a native from Ciro Redondo. His service sheet highlights his time at the agricultural farm of the Ciro Redondo sugar factory, where he held responsibilities as head of machinery and production. From there, he went to the various construction company of the municipality and then to the Morón block maker factory.
His time in various entities of the Ministry of Construction prepared him for two major tasks: first, directing the Construction Materials Company, for three years, and then the Construction Works for Tourism Company, from 2017 until the time of the choice.
He was elected deputy to the National Assembly of People's Power and is a member of the Communist Party of Cuba.
For his part, Vice-Governor Hiorvanys Espinosa Pérez, has a degree in Education, 45 years old, and before the election he worked as Coordinator of programs and objectives of the provincial government.
He began his working life at the Ciegoplast Company, where he held various positions and responsibilities, until he was chosen as CEO of the entity. In 2011, and for a year, he moved to Havana to direct the Hidroplast Company, at the request of the Higher Management Organization.
He returns to his position as general manager at Ciegoplast and in 2018, he is promoted to Delegate of the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources in the province. From there to the provincial government.
In his career as a cadre, he has received training in the Council of Ministers as a quarry of fundamental cadres of the State and the Government.
What are the functions of the governor and the vice-governor according to the Constitution of the Republic?In Articles 179, 180 and 181 of the Constitution of the Republic of Cuba the duties of the governors and vice-governors are established:
ARTICLE 179. It corresponds to the Governor:
a) Comply and enforce, as far as it is concerned, the Constitution and the laws;
b) Convene and preside over the meetings of the Provincial Council;
c) Direct, coordinate and control the work of the organizational structures of the Provincial Administration and, within the framework of its competence, issue normative provisions and adopt the corresponding decisions;
d) Demand and control compliance with the economic plan and execution of the province's budget, in accordance with the policy agreed upon by the competent national bodies;
e) Claim and manage compliance with development plans and territorial and urban planning;
f) Appoint and replace the directors and officials of the Provincial Administration, and submit to the ratification of the Provincial Council those cases provided for by law;
g) Present to the Council of Ministers, prior agreement of the Provincial Council, the proposals for policies that contribute to the integral development of the province;
h) Notify the Council of Ministers, with the prior agreement of the Provincial Council, those decisions of higher-ranking bodies that affect the interests of the community or are considered to exceed the powers of the person who adopted them;
i) Suspend the agreements and provisions of the councils of the Municipal Administration, which do not comply with the Constitution, laws, decree-laws, presidential decrees, decrees and other provisions of State bodies, or when they affect the interests of other localities or the generals of the country, informing the respective Municipal Assembly of People's Power in the first session held after said suspension;
j) Revoke or modify the provisions that are adopted by the provincial administrative authorities subordinate to it, that contravene the Constitution, the laws and other provisions in force, or that affect the interests of other communities or the general interests of the country;
k) Create commissions or temporary working groups;
l) Order the publication of the agreements of the Provincial Council of general interest and control their execution;
m) Any other powers assigned to it by this Constitution or by law.
ARTICLE 180. The Vice-Governor is elected in the same way, for the same period and the same requirements are demanded of him as the Governor.
ARTICLE 181. The Vice-Governor fulfills the powers delegated or assigned by the Governor. Likewise, he replaces the Governor in case of absence, illness or death, in accordance with the procedure established by law.