NCC considers new Carnival venue

THE National Carnival Commission (NCC) will meet in two weeks to decide if Carnival celebrations should be moved from the Queen’s Park Savannah in 2006. At Thursday’s post-Cabinet news conference at Whitehall, Community Development and Culture Minister Joan Yuille-Williams said Carnival appeared to have outgrown the Savannah and her ministry had devised plans for a new facility at the Savannah for Carnival. However Yuille-Williams was non-committal about whether or not another venue should be used instead of the Savannah. Speaking with Newsday after a press conference at the Queen’s Park Savannah, NCC chairman Kenny Da Silva said the NCC’s board would analyse the events of Carnival 2005 within the next fortnight.

He said those discussions would include whether or not Carnival celebrations would be held in the Savannah next year.  Da Silva added that the NCC could only make recommendations and at the end of the day “it is the minister’s call and the Government’s call.” Da Silva said Carnival 2005 was the biggest and best carnival in TT within recent times. He said all the data, even the number of tourists coming to TT for Carnival, indicate this. Overall, the NCC chairman said he was satisfied with the level of organisation for this year’s Carnival. He said the delay in the release of Carnival results earlier this week was due to computer problems, but the NCC used both electronic and manual systems to ensure that there were no problems tabulating the results.

Dave Cameron, leader of 2005 Band of the Year Trini Revellers, declined to comment on Yuille-Williams’ statement, but said Government and its related authorities needed to start planning from August for Carnival 2006. While Cameron lamented that the authorities have a track record of being late in planning for carnival, he was satisfied that the organisation of this year’s celebrations was better than 2004 and was improving. The bandleader was particularly pleased with the security provided by the police throughout the carnival period. Cameron said it was clear that the number of people playing mas had increased significantly and among other things, the authorities should consider lengthening the parade route through Port-of-Spain in order to handle the greater volume of masqueraders and to protect some of the smaller bands.