Cuban VP Marino Murillo Reappears

HAVANA TIMES — After days of rumors about the possible defection of Cuban Vice President and economic reforms chief, Marino Murillo Jorge, the official was reported present during a session this week of the Council of Ministers in the Cuban capital.

According to Granma daily, the head of the Permanent Commission for Implementation and Development filed his report on the compliance with the reform guidelines of the Communist Party.

Murillo updated some figures, such as those relating to loans granted to individuals, which to date total 218,400 persons borrowing more than a 1.773 billion regular Cuban pesos (70.9 million USD), and whose main objective has been to repair and build housing.

He added that more than 440 thousand persons had registered for self-employment, and it is estimated that the figure will continue to increase, while 270 non-agricultural cooperatives have been approved and another 228 are in the process of approval.

One of Marino’s daughters, Glenda Murillo Diaz, took advantage of a conference in Mexico in August 2012, in order to travel to the United States border and request asylum under the Cuban Adjusment Act.