New mas event added to Carnival calendar

Felix Celestine, NCBA Vice- President and representative on the board of the National Carnival Commission (NCC) did not wish to divulge any details about the event but said it will lift the standards of traditional mas.

"Traditional mas has been seriously eroded over the years, and this event will make Trinidad and Tobago very proud," said Celestine, who added that another event involving a collaboration of pan, mas and calypso is also on the drawing board.

Referring to a reported plan for a $50,000 bond penalty for bands, Celestine said the plan was never implemented by the NCBA:"No decision was ever taken to implement any bond as a penalty for 2006. No matter was taken to make this a measure, it was purely a suggestion."

NCBA President Owen Hinds made it clear there would be no boycotting of Carnival 2006 by mas bands. "There has been so much misinformation about whether we would have Carnival and whether it will be boycotted. It was a very wicked thing to do. Carnival 2006 will take place and there will be no boycott," Hinds insisted. Hinds said there were bands who would pass through the Queen’s Park Savannah (QPS) and play mas for the day and these were the bands that were causing most of the confusion.

The NCBA President called for an increase in the subventions for Kings and Queens, and Band of the Year. The NCBA is currently allocated $250,000 to assist mini, small and to a lesser extent medium bands.