A PARADE of approximately 35 illuminated floats and a remarkably large crowd of onlookers along the route from Sheriff Street to the La Bonne Intention (LBI) Community Centre Ground on the East Coast of Demerara, made this year’s Diwali motorcade the biggest ever.

President Donald Ramotar, in his remarks at the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha organised event, urged persons to use the significance of Diwali to re-dedicate themselves to the struggle for the betterment of Guyana.

He noted that Diwali has many messages that are relevant in recent times. “It is the victory of good over evil, the victory of light over darkness, the victory of knowledge over ignorance and these are all things we have been working for and struggling for, and for generations to come.”

He emphasised that this was what Dr Cheddi Jagan had worked for all his life as well as Pandit Reepu Daman Persaud, noting that this is the first year Diwali is being celebrated without him.

He pointed out that Pandit Persaud’s continuous preservation and development of this process has ensured a developing culture as he had made a vital contribution to the nation in preserving the Guyanese culture as a whole.

“We will always miss him for the tremendous work he has done,” the President said.

The President said: “Everyday as we work very hard in order to develop our country, we constantly fight against persons who put Guyana in backwardness.”

And he noted that although Guyana came out of that darkness years ago, “there are still forces of darkness who want to put us back, opposing every developmental project that we have.”

However, President Ramotar maintained that Guyana stands solid in the faith that light will triumph over the darkness and good will triumph over evil. He concluded that “we are happy and I am confident that we are standing on the side of the good, the righteousness.”

Wishing everyone a Happy Diwali, the President reiterated that persons ought to re-dedicate themselves to the betterment of the country.

Meanwhile, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport Dr Frank Anthony, observed that Diwali is indeed a very happy occasion when good triumphs over evil and the lights come out and banish the darkness.

He advised that “if we can reflect on that for ourselves and use the meaning of Diwali to improve our lives, I think all of us will be better persons.”

As a member of the judging panel, Dr Anthony said that the details of each float were closely examined in terms of what differentiated them and made them unique and then the winners were selected.

He said that it was no easy task as every float was unique in its own way and carried a beautiful aura. However, there was a very competent judging panel headed by Mr Pradeep Santami, who has many years of experience.

In the end, the Progressive Youth Organisation (PYO) scooped the grand prize for being the ‘Best Overall Float’, while the Edward B Beharry Company won the prize for best commercial float.

There were also other categories which were awarded prizes for their creativity, including the large category, the small category and the new participants’ prize.

For the large category the winners were:
In first place, the Better Hope Mandir
The PYO – Second place
The Balesar Family – Third place

Jeffrey Iqbal Performance
The packed evening also included dances and song renditions by the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha members as well as entertainment by the Caribbean Hot Shots band. However, the highlight of the entertainment segment was the almost two-hour appearance of the enchanting Jeffrey Iqbal, a US-born singer who has been taking Bollywood by storm with his melodious voice and exhilarating performances.

Others who attended Saturday night’s Diwali motorcade included Director of the National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS) Dr Shanti Singh; former President Bharrat Jagdeo; Prime Minister Samuel Hinds; Minister of Finance Dr Ashni Singh; and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, among others.

PULL QUOTE: President Ramotar urges persons to use the significance of Diwali to re-dedicate themselves to the struggle for the betterment of Guyana.