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The United Progressive Party MP for St Mary’s South Kelvin Shugy Simon
Parliamentary Representative for St Mary’s South Kelvin Shugy Simon says the recent approval of the government’s budget for Barbuda Carnival has sparked concerns about the lack of genuine commitment to cultural development and economic empowerment by the Gaston Browne administration.
Simon says the allocated budget, a mere EC$75,000, has raised questions about the event’s adequacy of funding and the Barbuda Council‘s ability to stage a high-quality and economically impactful festival.
As MP Simon points out, staging a cultural festival requires adequate funding for everything from decorations to timely payment of the artists and service providers.
He said unfortunately, for many years, the Gaston-led government has deprived the Barbuda Council of the funding to which it is entitled.
This according to Simon has made it more challenging for the Council to meet the costs required to stage a festival that can attract both locals and stay-over tourists.
The underfunding of Barbuda Carnival by the government appears to be a form of vindictive payback to frustrate Barbudans who have been defending their land ownership and way of life according to Simon
He said the carnival should be an opportunity to ensure Barbudans and Antiguans receive robust economic benefits from a properly funded and strongly marketed festival, which enjoys the highest possible participation from locals and tourists alike.
According to him, instead, the government’s actions threaten to sabotage the development of the yearly event and limit its potential to become a regional attraction.
Furthermore, Simon claims that the allocated budget of $75,000 is often the cost of a single fete, which is hardly enough to cover the expenses required to stage a successful carnival.
In light of this, MP Simon is calling on Gaston Browne and his administration to reconsider their decision and come up with a budget that makes sense.
Barbuda Carnival has the potential, if properly supported, to be a major success with strong economic benefits to our twin island state and to Barbudans in particular he believes,
In all honesty Barbuda wants to be on their own so here’s an opportunity to prove that they have the potential.