– Minister Anthony
THE Float Parade in Georgetown, which is the high point of Mashramani celebrations in the city, will take place as planned, today, in spite of the heavy rains that fell countrywide over the last few days.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony made the announcement at a media briefing, yesterday, stating that the decision was arrived at on the basis of the need for a balance to be struck between the interests of all stakeholders and the constraining conditions.
“We are balancing a lot of factors. We feel we should proceed,” he added.
Anthony admitted that the stakeholders, whom he met earlier, were divided on their positions on whether the event should take place today.
However, he said the proposal to postpone it to Sunday was put forward by stakeholders who did not have participating bands.
The others, Anthony said, have made significant investments and were engaged in much preparations for today’s activity.
“We must strike a balance,” he maintained.
The Minister pointed out that a major concern was that of the religious community, which was opposed to the postponement to Sunday.
He said one of the religious denominations, Body of Christ is expected to hit the roads with a 1,000 strong contingent and Sunday, for most church goers, would be inconvenient.
“We are trying to balance several factors,” he stressed.
Anthony acknowledged that some rain is expected during the early hours of today but expressed his optimism that Guyanese will come out to celebrate.
According to him, the anticipated pockets of water will be drained to prevent any inconvenience.
If the weather forecasters are accurate, then more rain is scheduled during the next 36 hours and the parade route will be affected, because the parapets on Merriman’s Mall and Church Street and Vlissingen Road will be muddy and unsuitable for spectators who, usually, flock there to view the show.
“We considered this. It might not be the ideal situation, but we feel people will come out,” the Minster said.
He said systems are in place to facilitate smooth sailing today and proceeding with the parade is the best possible solution.
Anthony said the security details would be there and checks, along the route as well as in the National Park, have been done to ensure that everything is in place for the parade to proceed, starting at 10:00hrs from Camp and Church Streets, with 38 contingents.
He also announced that the Flag-Raising Ceremony will be held today in Public Buildings compound, in addition to those in the Regions.