From the Trinidad Express:
Did the People's Partnership break its promise of multi-million-dollar prizes for Carnival winners?
By Ria Taitt Political Editor
Story Created: Jan 12, 2011 at 12:50 AM ECT
Story Updated: Jan 12, 2011 at 12:50 AM ECT
As he confirmed the $2 million prize money for the four major competitions (Panorama, Soca Monarch, Chutney Monarch and Calypso Monarch) will only be for this year, Minister of Multiculturalism Winston "Gypsy" Peters yesterday insisted the People's Partnership Government did not break its election promise.
Speaking to the Express by telephone, Peters said the Government was giving exactly what was promised on its election platform.
"The Prime Minister made a statement that she wanted to give the steelband, the Calypso Monarch, the Chutney Monarch and the Soca Monarch $2 million in prize money. She made that promise and she only made it this year," he said.
Responding to statements from the People's National Movement (PNM) that it was an open-ended promise, not a one-year promise, Peters asked: "Who made the promise? The PNM or us? We made a promise! And I am telling you what promise we made. They (PNM) could say what they want!"
Reminded that the electorate was told the prize money would be increased to $2 million, Peters said: "Nobody never say that. The Prime Minister said this year they going to get that ($2 million). And I made it clear exactly what it was, what she was saying. She never tell anybody that she was leaving any prize at $2 million indefinitely. She did not say that!"
Asked whether it was being given for this year only as part of the celebration of the People's Partnership election victory, Peters said: "I don't know if it is to celebrate that. But I would think that it could form part of the celebration."
He said he had explained to stakeholders that it was only for one year from the very beginning.
However, speaking at the People's Partnership election rally at the Aranjuez Savannah on May 22, two days before the election, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar told a massive crowd: "Today, I pledge to you as well that all the competitions which showcase the talent of our land, whether it be the Chutney Monarch, the Soca Monarch, the Panorama finals... in all these competitions ..., I pledge to you today that in true equality and justice, that the first prize for all these competitions will be $2 million...and that is how we will rise together, every creed and race; we will rise!"
On the controversy over the reduction in the steelband players' fee from $1,000 to $800, Peters reiterated since Pan Trinbago was getting an extra million dollars from the Government for this year, it could use this to give its membership the $200 difference.
Asked what would happen next year when this extra $1 million is not available to Pan Trinbago, Peters said they would "have to revert to what they are accustomed doing". Will Government then revert to the $1,000 players' fee? Peters said he had stated "one million times" that he did not believe that people should be paid to play in the Panorama preliminaries.
"When people have attained something; let's say you have gotten to the semi-finals, I don't mind paying you $1,000. But you cannot pay people for being in the preliminaries. That is my take on this whole thing," he said.
Peters added that people talked about their love of pan but asked where is this love of pan if money was the only motive for entering the steelband preliminaries. He said he was not in favour of the Government paying anyone to enter the preliminaries of any competition whatsoever.
"Like everybody else who enters a competition, the preparation for going into that competition is the individual's expense... It is your expense," he said.
However, he said while he was not in favour of paying any money to players for the preliminaries, he had made a compromise by agreeing to give $800. Furthermore, he said Government gave $20,000 and $10,000 to every unsponsored steelband, based on their size, in preparation for Panorama.
Peters said the country had other needs to service apart from the steelband. Government had to put beds in the hospital, feed hungry children, fix the roads and put water in the taps, he said.
"So we cannot be frivolously spending money all over the place," he said.
He said pan had all year to make money through its innovative ways.
"Everything in this country is, 'The Government must pay for that; the Government must give me this; the Government must give me that.' Come on! This country doesn't have as much money as we used to have. And if we go to spend it foolishly, we would be back in the same position that we are in now," he said.
He added Government must spend the money wisely and allow people to become independent.
On the PNM's position that support for the steelband was a valuable investment in economic growth and diversification because it brought tourists to the country, Peters said tourists came to this country to see people dance the bele, to play mas and to hear people sing calypso.
"People come here for a variety of reasons. People don't come here for one thing... They come here for Carnival...for a combination of things. And steelband is one aspect of our culture. It is one component of Carnival," he said.
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