Elderly Left in the Sun While Empty Seats Inside: Outrage Over Pension Payment Chaos at Holguín Bank

On Wednesday, an elderly man expressed his frustration after being unable to collect his pension at a Banco Popular de Ahorro branch in Holguín. The retiree claimed that bank employees ceased operations while many elderly individuals remained in line, awaiting service.

Pedro Lorenzo Hechavarría Pupo shared his experience on Facebook, detailing his visit to the branch located at Aguilera and Maceo streets, a central location in Holguín. He aimed to receive his pension payment, designated for those born between 1945 and 1949.

Hechavarría Pupo stated that he reached the front of the queue shortly before the office's 3 PM closing time, yet he still left empty-handed. He refuted any claims of improved services for pensioners, stating, "If you've been told there have been changes to better the situation for the elderly collecting pensions, it's a lie."

He also criticized the ineffectiveness of solar panel installations, remarking, "They installed solar panels... but we still can't get our payments." According to his account, this scenario is a monthly occurrence. Bank staff reportedly announced, "We need to close now, please," ending service despite the remaining crowd.

The retiree recounted a distressing incident where an elderly man fainted while waiting outside. Despite the availability of empty seats inside, seniors were left standing outside in the heat. He chose not to photograph the man out of respect for his dignity.

Comments on the post suggest this isn't an isolated issue. One person described a similar situation at another bank where only a handful of people received their payments before a power outage plunged others into distress. An elderly man fell into a muddy ditch, further highlighting the chaos.

Frustration was evident in other comments: "They treat retired seniors without any regard. Every month it's the same story... they're very punctual about closing, and if you’re left out, tough luck. There's no respect, no humanity," a user lamented.

A journalist who weighed in on the post posed a poignant question: "When a bank worker visits a healthcare facility, will they be told, 'That's it, we're done here'?" Another comment drew comparisons to third-world countries where the elderly are prioritized in public services and noted, "And by the way, that's capitalism, not socialism, which claims equality but delivers the opposite."

One resident summed up the ordeal, saying, "After living through this with adrenaline levels skyrocketing, preparing for a massive heart attack... to hear someone talk about resilience and continuity... it's laughable to the point of tears."

The disarray at the Holguín bank branch is far from unique. The same individual documented similar long lines at this branch in May, commenting, "A new month... the same problem."

Amidst this chaos, the local government initiated a pilot program with about twenty small businesses to disburse cash payments, but it reached only 5,000 of over 52,000 retirees in the area, less than 10%.

This banking crisis is widespread. A viral video in mid-July captured the turmoil outside Havana’s Banco Metropolitano, with Cubans scrambling for cash from the early hours.

Granma's government admitted in June to lacking 400 million pesos to pay 111,000 pensioners, and Guantánamo reported a daily shortage of three million pesos for pension payments.

With a maximum pension of 4,000 pesos per month—under 10 dollars in the informal exchange market—and a basic food basket costing over 12,000 pesos per person, more than 1.7 million retirees across Cuba depend on a banking system that consistently fails them.