The top photograph shows Gustavo Gutiérrez holding a press conference regarding housing construction and the "Plan Economico Minimo" held on June 2, 1952 in the offices of the Junta Nacional de Economia, ( National Board of Economy). Gustavo Gutiérrez was the president of that commission. Seated directly across from him is Dr. Jose Pardo Jimenez, Minister of Public Works who created the Law-decree for Economic Housing. To his right is journalist and personal friend of Gutiérrez, Ramon Vasconcelos.
In the newspaper article above Dr. Gutiérrez writes to journalist Carlos M. Lechuga in response to an article Mr. Lechuga wrote in El Mundo newspaper where the latter criticized Dr. Gutiérrez for calling immoral his objection over the proposed purchase by the State of lands on which to build an urban developement called la Ciudad Ferroviaria in the province of Camagüey. Dr. Gutiérrez opposed out of principle the idea that the State should pay for these lands out right for the creation of a lower income housing project (Ciudad Ferroviaria de Camagüey) and that in all parts of the world urbanization projects are developed in conjunction with the individuals that own the lands. He adds that instead, he has agreed, in conjunction with the National Housing Commission and the Counsel of Ministers, to loan the real estate developers a sum of $415,000, interest free, payable in 20 years, the extension of tax payments; incentives, all of which are included in the Law-decree for Economic Housing.
This project was submitted to the National Housing Commission (CNV) by the Workers and Employees Cooperative of Consolidated Railways and the Institute Columnas de Plata, (Cooperativa de Empleados y Obreros de los Ferrocarriles Consolidados and the Institución Columnas de Plata). "It constitutes the best project submitted to the CNV dealing with low income housing to date." Dr. Gutiérrez adds that he believes that these two groups will receive all the assistance from the State that is necessary. It seems these groups wanted the State to give them these lands for free as opposed to offering them a loan instead.
In the second part of this article he refers to a previous article written by Raúl Cepero Bonilla on December 4 of the previous year (?) in the newspaper Prensa Libre where the writer confirms Gustavo's assertion that he had nothing to do with the failure of the unification of the railway companies, acknowledged, as well, by the leaders of the United Railway Brotherhood (Hermandad Ferroviaria de los Unidos). He adds, "I'm not concerned if in this situation there was law firm wrong doing. It doesn't affect me. Law firms exist to facilitate business dealings that are legitimate and governments exist to stop those that are not."
In the following year Cuba would purchase from the British government all the land on which the Cuban railroads were built. For more information please see blog entry from October 2008, "Cuba Purchases British Railway Properties, 1953." This was a project that was spearheaded by Gutiérrez himself.
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