Georgetown : Minister within the Ministry of Education with responsibility for Culture, Youth and Sport, Nicolette Henry has reiterated that government has encouraged an opened door policy as it relates to suggestions and ideas for the country’s 50th anniversary celebration.
Addressing a press briefing at the Department of Culture, Youth and Sport on Main Street, Minister Henry explained that, “A lot of persons, whose names are being thrown out there, are actually part of the various committees.”
Further, she noted that the Committee has been working, but since the 50th independence anniversary is a national event, she pointed out that the input, be it criticism or encouragement by the public is welcomed. “If you believe that you can do anything to improve what is happening, I welcome you on board. I had an open door policy, from day one. I am not going to close the door at any time because I really want to engage; I really want to get a sense of what are they thinking out there, can it embellish what we are already thinking,” she said.
“I have to say and I would be the first to admit that an event of this magnitude requires no less than two years of planning, as you understand, there was a change in government. Therefore, what would have been required in two years, had to be done in six months, and we are getting it done in six months,” she noted.
She pointed out that any right thinking person would recognise that there would be a lot of procedures and due processes that need to be observed before one can really begin to see an output. To this end, a lot of processes had to be put in place, in order for things to function well, and for there to be a good product.
According to Minister Henry, there are now several persons that are on board. The National Commemorative Commission has 14 commissioners, and these represent not only the government, but the private sector as well. “We have invited the opposition, we have youth, we have women…which is not unusual for this type of commission to have,” she said.
She explained that for the purpose of the 50th anniversary, that the commission is divided into 10 working groups. These groups focus on several areas including commemorative activities such as stamps and coins and memorabilia; ceremonial activities, inclusive of events such as the flag raising ceremony, military parades; academia including literary work, symposium, debates, publication, coffee table books and events.
These working groups are chaired by commissioners. “For events we have a commissioner, the commissioner is the Director of Sports Christopher Jones, he reports almost on an hourly basis, what is happening,” Minister Henry explained.
It is the events component of the celebration that a lot of persons are particularly hung-up on, the Minister noted. In addition to the talks, there is also a lot of excitement and a lot of interest with enthusiasm, she stated, “To just go through the screening process of how things actually get on the calendar is a huge undertaking in itself. I think I have received more proposals than there are people in this country. Every minute of the day, I get three to four …proposals just turning up,” she explained.
It therefore has been a balancing act, Minister Henry explained because “these are people who are really enthusiastic, they want to be a part of the celebration, so you spend a lot of time trying to refocus to see if it can become a fit.”
Then there are the issues of the commission and its mandate and having a certain budgeted amount, “So while you really want to engage and involve, it has to be within the context of the resources that are available,” Minister Henry explained.
She also pointed to the issue of infrastructure and settings available to the country for the hosting of these events. “…we have to decide what we are going to come up with, tailored to meet our needs, based on our resources. We do not have the type of stadiums like other countries…therefore we cannot begin to think, that we can mirror the type of event they have. It must be done in the context of resources,” she noted.
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