Fidel Castro was nominated on Sunday as a National Assembly candidate, signaling that the ailing Cuban leader was not yet ready to give up politics and could even return to the presidency.
The 81-year-old, not seen in public since he temporarily stepped down in July last year following surgery, was included on a list of candidates for national elections on Jan. 20 in Santiago de Cuba, where he has traditionally been nominated for office.
To applause and cheers of "Viva Fidel, viva the commander in chief!", municipal officials in Santiago de Cuba unanimously approved Castro's nomination on a list of candidates for the National Assembly.
Castro must hold a seat in the National Assembly to officially resume the presidency.
The nomination was a response to the "immense affection, respect, consideration and recognition that our people have [for him]," Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage said.
SURGERY
Castro has led Cuba for almost five decades but "provisionally" handed over power to his younger brother and longtime No. 2 Raul, 76, after undergoing intestinal surgery 16 months ago.
Since then Cuban officials have said he keeps up with official business, and he has been writing opinion pieces on national and global affairs in the local media. But there had been until now no official indication of whether or when he would resume the presidency.
Opposition figures expressed frustration at the nomination, saying that if he were reelected president, Cuba would not progress.
"It will keep the country ... in stagnation," said dissident leader Marta Beatriz Roque.
"Castro is a brake" on reforms, said opposition economist Oscar Espinosa. "This is going to make many things worse."
From the ranks of the nominees for the national and provincial assemblies, 614 lawmakers will be elected next month and they will choose the Council of State. The council's president serves as head of Cuba's one-party government.
If Fidel had not been nominated on Sunday, that could have opened the way for Raul Castro -- also re-nominated on Sunday in Santiago de Cuba -- to formally take over Cuba's presidency next year.
Lage said Castro was needed as head of state "because there is no job more important in the world," a job that requires an awareness of the dangers facing the planet and "the needs of responsible citizens."
SPECULATION
Since Castro handed power over to his brother, speculation has been rife as to whether the he would formally return to power or even remain politically active.
Cuba-watchers say it is possible he might be elected an assembly deputy, but then choose not to run for re-election to the Council of State. Voting for the presidency is set to be held no later than March 5, next year.
Fidel, who rose to power in Cuba leading the 1959 revolution, continues to convalesce at an undisclosed location.
The US has made repeated calls for Cuba to hold free elections to launch a transition away from Castro's rule.
But Cuba maintains its electoral process, run without any campaigning, is "the most democratic in the world."
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