MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

President Raul Castro names hard liner to cover his back

"Fidel is irreplaceable" said his brother Raul namend as a new president

Raul Castro was unanimously selected Sunday by Cuba's National Assembly as president succeeding his ailing brother Fidel who stepped down last week after nearly half a century in charge.

Raul has in effect been caretaker president since Fidel had major surgery in July 2006. It is understood that he was the only nominee in a vote seen as a formality. However the real surprise was when Raul chose 78-year-old Politburo hardliner Machado Ventura as vice-president. Political analysts were anticipating that the real clue to any possible changes would be given by the name of the new number two, possibly a member of the younger generation of communist leaders. The spotlights had been pointing to two possible candidates: vicepresident Carlos Lage, 56, and the current Minister of Foreign Affairs Felipe Perez Roque, 42, both of them known to be reformist minded. However the orthodox and pragmatic (reformist) sectors inside the Cuban regime agree that whatever is to happen "transformations and concept changes" are not bound to change in the near or medium term. The word "transition" is a foreign, invasive term, "continuity is the only valid word" to define the Raul Castro period that begun this Sunday, said sources close to the National Assembly. But in the last year Raul has encouraged people to meet in private town hall meetings to debate the issues bothering them - low wages, decrepit housing, a strained transport network and government corruption. "Fidel is irreplaceable; the people will continue his work when he is no longer with us physically, though his ideas always will be here" Raul said in his acceptance speech. "I accept the responsibility I have been given with the conviction I have repeated often - there is only one Commander in Chief of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel is Fidel and we all know it well." The national assembly gave Raul permission to consult Fidel on major state matters. Cuba's national assembly is also charged with selecting the 31-member council of state, as well as other posts. Before Sunday's session, Raul Castro had suggested implementing major economic reforms and "structural changes". He has worked to ensure a smooth political transition, keeping the army loyal to the regime and strengthening the Communist Party's hold by introducing reforms and weeding out corrupt officials. He has also had the advantage of continued economic support from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in the form of millions of barrels of cheap oil. But Raul is also an old hand and from his post as Minister of Defence has control over the vast resources and powers of the Armed Forces. It is estimated that in Cuba the Defence ministry is responsible for almost 60% of the island's GDP. Fidel Castro, who has ruled Cuba since leading a revolution in 1959, announced his retirement in a letter published on the website of the Cuban Communist Party's newspaper Granma last week. He said he had not stepped down after undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in 2006 because he had had a duty to the Cuban people to prepare them for his absence. But retirement, he added, would not stop him from carrying "on fighting like a soldier of ideas", and he promised to continue writing essays entitled Reflections of Comrade Fidel. Though he has not been seen in public for 19 months, the government occasionally releases photographs and pre-edited video of him meeting visiting leaders from around the world