The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

ROUGHLY eight weeks out from the third instalment of Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, officials in the Bahamas National Festival Commission were yesterday still unable to confirm many of the key details surrounding the upcoming event.

In an interview with The Tribune on Thursday, BNFC Chairman Paul Major said event organisers were “still progressing” on many of the event’s concepts, including key performers and the format of daily events.

Officials last year announced that this year’s festival would take place April 28-29 in Grand Bahama, and then move to New Providence for its climax May 4-6.

According to Mr Major, those are still the dates his office is working with, as well as how best to allocate the $5m budgeted by the government for this year’s festival.

“We are close on many of the details,” stated Mr Major. “Now when I say close, there are still key aspects of those details that we still have to confirm and finalise, because when we go to the public, we want to have all of these things clear and ready to go.

“We have our dates. We have a discussed budget. Now we have to put this all together and we are close to doing just that,” he added.

Since being introduced in 2015, Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival has been criticised by many for its lack of return on investment and limited delivery of authentic Bahamian culture.

The first festival was heavily criticised after Trinidadian soca star Machel Montano took top billing over Bahamian band, Baha Men.

The fallout from that dispute led to an even more sketchy process for year two of the festival, with officials not naming a headline act until mere weeks before the festival.

Additionally, the commission announced that the festival would not feature one main act, but multiple “headliners”.

That festival, which ran in New Providence from May 5 to 7, 2016, featured a mix of Bahamian artists with several international performers.

Trinidadian soca queen Destra closed the festival’s concert, which included a performance by Grammy award winning Haitian hip-hop artist Wyclef Jean.

Of this year’s plans, Mr Major said: “We have several acts identified; but no deals yet and because of that I don’t want to say to much. But, as soon as we get those done we will say.

“We are going to go with the multiple headline act idea again because you get more bang for your buck that way.

“We are also working to make some changes with the format. It is going to be more or less a lot like last year; but we are working to change some things with the Thursday night set-up.

“But details are close. We will give the public something very shortly,” stated Mr Major.

In February, Free National Movement Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest called for the government to postpone or delay this year’s festival until after the general election, warning that the event could only be perceived as “vote buying” if staged during the election cycle.

The Constitution mandates that a general election be staged every five years. The last election was held on May 7, 2012.

Prime Minister Perry Christie has not announced an election date for this year.

“It should definitely be after (the next election),” Mr Turnquest said at the time. “We have to be careful that it is not seen as an electioneering event. It ought not to be a rally of sorts paid for by the Bahamian people.”