Winston “Gypsy” Peters, chairman of the National Carnival Commission (NCC), has extended an invitation to everyone both local and abroad to attend this year’s event, even though travel warnings have advised residents of the US and Canada not to go to Trinidad and Tobago.
During an interview over the phone with a local news outlet, Peters stated that there would be more security leading up to Carnival on February 12 and 13.
- Advertisement -
The Canadian government revised a bit of travel advice on January 10th, advising its nationals to go to Trinidad and Tobago with extreme care due to violent violence. It said that violent crimes, including armed robberies, assaults, and sexual assaults, happen often, particularly in Port of Spain, under the subhead of safety and security.
It claimed that kidnappings for ransom have escalated since 2018 and that tourists have been singled out for attack. Passengers on cruise ships were instructed to use extreme caution when moving about.
The advisory claimed, “Shootings, kidnappings, and other gang and drug-related violence also occur. There is a risk of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Although opinions about Carnival and T&T’s crime rate have been voiced, some individuals think the event shouldn’t happen at all given the crime rate, according to Peters. Even in the absence of crime, some people in the nation think Carnival ought to end the chairman shared.
Peter stated, “We were taught and made to believe that Carnival was the worst thing to ever happen to this country, it belongs to the devil, it is a devil thing and it is against God. Without all the crime publicity, we are having, there are people who will say that anyway.”
The NCC Chairman added, “I don’t take on that kind of thing. We were taught in this country to hate ourselves. Hate Carnival, hate calypso, hate steelpan, hate mas.”
He claimed that while they are in the minority, many of them are aware of the importance of Carnival.
“Fortunately, the Government of T&T understands that and so we continue to propagate our Carnival all over the world,” he said.
According to Peters, crime has little bearing on Carnival, “Around Carnival, it don’t have any crime. We should probably have Carnival every day….Everybody, even the criminal-minded people, take time off to participate in their Carnival activities.”
He declared that precautions would be made to guarantee public safety throughout Carnival.
When asked if he thought the travel advisories would have a substantial negative impact on the T&T Carnival offering, Peters said that he did not think so.
“It will have some kind of impact on something, but I do not believe it is going to be any significant impact.”
According to Peters, the commission has acquired a share of the $146 million subsidization and aims to spend an additional $146 million on the event this year.
“It is never that you get all of the funds that you are actually allocated at one time…We get those things in tranches.”
The money that has been collected thus far has been used for ongoing projects, particularly those at Port of Spain’s Queen’s Park Savannah.
Although some have voiced worries over the expansion of other regional carnivals such as those in Jamaica, Peters stated that T&T has generally been collaborating with these nations.
He added that members of the Jamaica Carnival Stakeholders Committee will be his guests during the carnival this year and that they should arrive in Trinidad and Tobago by February 7.
“This is the Caribbean, and T&T is the mecca of Carnival. We are the ones who created this type of carnival. So, we are always in collaboration with a lot of people, whether it is in New York, Miami, London, Canada, Jamaica, and other Caribbean islands.”
He stated that while none of these carnivals pose a danger to T&T’s Carnival, the nation should exercise caution because it is already operating in a “competitive business.”
“We have exported Carnival so much to the rest of the world, we have to make sure that whatever we are doing is done in a way that makes us keep our status.”
He claimed that because there is demand in other areas like Ghana and the Emirates city of Dubai, the Carnival T&T brand is growing even further.
On January 18, he said he was “dribbling” into those markets and that there had been discussions between NCC representatives and Dubai officials.
“We are going to continue these talks by Monday or Tuesday (January 22 or 23) to take a contingent there.”
He claimed that exporting T&T’s Carnival would result in more foreign currency.
When asked if the nation received any sort of consulting fee from these talks, he replied, “No,” yet in the end T&T got paid.
“When we go out there and export this and people see it and like it, where it comes from and people come to T&T, it redounds to the exchequer.”
According to Peters, he is happy with the direction Carnival 2024 is taking and the commission is working hard to iron out any wrinkles.
“T&T’s Carnival is safe. I want to tell people, ‘Feel free to come to T&T’s Carnival. It is a safe place to be. No one is going to harm you. No harm is going to come to you. Come to T&T’s Carnival, you are well protected.’”
