AS GUYANA ushered in the celebrations in honour of its Golden Jubilee last year, the country’s Mashramani parade was shifted from its usual date on February 23 to May 26. With this change, came the introduction of a different route that would see the revelers moving from the Stabroek Market Square, along Brickdam and into D’Urban Park.
Minister within the Ministry of Education, Nicolette Henry, said that the route held historic significance, given that Brickdam is the first street to have been built in Georgetown, and that the revelers would pass by the Independence Arch. While Mashramani has returned to its regular date this year however, the route has not, and the change- though met with concerns from the public- is said to have been a strategic one made by government; one that will allow for greater safety and security for the revelers and onlookers.
The new route, which is also shorter, will now make room for a joint parade for both the adults and children, while its points of assembly and culmination will allow for more floats, more revelers and more people. These are the main selling points for Government’s decision, and attractive though they are, the question arises as to what the disadvantages are and how or if they will be remedied.
For starters, consideration must go into whether there ever was a need for both the children and adult parades to be merged. Many may argue that a separation is necessary in order to give freedom to certain behaviours that are likely to occur among the older age groups, while preserving the behaviours that are still affiliated with the younger ones. Persons have also argued as to whether the children- many of whom fall among the youngest of our student population-be able to endure the enlarged crowd, intense heat and prolonged judging period?
A shorter route could also mean less space for vendors and these stakeholders have been among the lot to raise arms in objection to the change. Certainly, D’Urban Park has the space, but as opposed to the placement they have enjoyed for years along the Church Street/Vlissengen Road route, the vendors don’t seem to like this idea much at all. Organisers have pointed to the several open spaces near the D’Urban Park and surroundings areas that would be available for vending.
In retrospect, the idea of “bigger and better” may also very well be a stretch of the imagination, given that last year’s event did not quite translate to that. D’Urban Park is indeed bigger, and allowed for more people to observe the parade, but its massive platform seemed to swallow up the less than 30 floats and its revelers as each float passed through the ground. There was limited visibility for persons on either end of the venue and the sound provided by individual systems on the trucks faded quickly from earshot before reaching centre ground. So this year, while the bigger venue will be used as a selling point, one must wonder if the size of the floats and the bands will grow as well to make for a better display.
Of course, for this or other solutions to have been possible, the announcement that the change in route would now be permanent would have had to come much sooner than it did. This would have allowed for adjustments to be made by even the most skeptical of stakeholders. More importantly, however, it would have allowed for more time to create a shift in attitude and outlook, after all, it is popular belief that the old route seemed to work just fine all these years, so the introduction of an alternative would take some time to swallow. But perhaps the new route should instead be approached with a wave of enthusiasm, as was seen in Charmaine Blackman’s newest music video. After all, a new route could signify new direction with new opportunities. And with the Government’s thrust of the ‘Good Life’, perhaps “Celebration with dignity, liberty and greater unity” may best be honoured by traversing along a brand new path.
