Palace condoles with Cuba, family of late leader Fidel Castro

Malacañang on Saturday condoled with the people of the Republic of Cuba and the family of late former President Fidel Castro.

"Mr. Castro was a revolutionary who upon assuming his island’s highest political office reasserted his nation’s dignity and self-worth, stood up against the West and capitalism," the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said in a statement.

"As it extols socialism, Cuba is one of the few societies that remain untouched by commercialism," it added.

The PCO noted that Castro, as his nation's father, focused on health, education and literacy.

"His achievements in social development, such as establishing a universal health care and providing free education, became models for many developing nations with limited fiscal resources," the Palace said.

"The passing of former President Castro will surely be felt by the peoples of Cuba and the world. We are one with the family of Mr. Castro, the Cuban Government, and the Cuban nation during this period of deep mourning," it said.

Castro, 90, the Cuban revolutionary leader who built a communist state on the doorstep of the United States and for five decades defied US efforts to topple him, died on Friday, his brother, President Raul Castro announced to the nation. —ALG, GMA News