Trinidad Guardian 5 days ago
Carnival 2024 takes place on February 12 and 13, which is more than enough time for those in National Carnival Commission (NCC) leadership positions and the three Carnival interest groups to begin preparations and develop a solid plan to avoid the missteps that dogged this year’s festivities.
With just days to go before the ‘Mother of all Carnivals’, it is hard to ignore the cancellations, funding shortfalls and poorly patronised events that have cast a shadow over what should have been a joyous return to the annual revelry after two-year hiatus.
Despite efforts by Culture Minister Randall Mitchell and NCC chairman Winston “Gypsy” Peters to put a positive spin on Carnival 2023, they should be keenly aware of the urgent need to return to the drawing board to rethink and recalibrate several aspects of T&T’s biggest cultural event.
Mr Peters, a former Calypso Monarch and Trinbago Unified Calypsonians’ Organisation (TUCO) founding member, had a first-hand look at how badly many events organised by that interest group have been faring for quite a few years. He certainly cannot deny the evidence right in front of him on Thursday night when he competed in the Extempo category of TUCO’s Kaisorama. The number of empty seats in the Grand and North Stands meant little in the way of gate receipts, a situation TUCO should not be facing with one of its premier shows.
You take a DUMB GUY like GYPSY and a CULTURE HATER like MITCHELL -- those in the "POLITICAL KNOW" know that he has ZERO INTEREST IN CULTURE other than to pad his political resume so that he can try to become PRIME MINISTER of TRINIDAD and TOBAGO -- to run THE MOTHER OF ALL CARNIVALS and it WILL END IN DISASTER.
Which it did. Those who got money in their pockets from the event -- the SHORT SIGHTED GIMME GIMME CULTURE -- will hate this posting. But all I could do is feel pity for their selfishness and lack of CULTURAL VISION. We should have moved beyond the NEXT MEAL or HAMPER by now -- but I know better.
UNTIL PAN AND CARNIVAL move beyond PARTY NEPOTISM -- INCOMPETENCE, CHAOS and BACCHANAL will always stop us from getting it right and MOVING FORWARD.
It does not matter how much time you give them -- they just do not have the BUSINESS ACUMEN to change anything that could become productive. Leave them in place and NEXT YEAR will be THE SAME CHAOS.
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