THE EDITOR: I am kindly asking the Minister of Tourism and the NCC chairman the following questions with the hope of getting answers since the public has a right to know:

* When were meetings held to decide whether or not Carnival 2022 could have been hosted?

* Who were the stakeholders invited to the meetings? It seems many key people had no say whatsoever. It should be noted that Carnival does not belong to the Government or the PNM. Carnival belongs to the people of TT.

* Who got the contract for the Carnival pods?

* How much did it cost for the pods to be installed/made?

* Was there a procurement or a tendering process for the pods?

* If yes, was the procurement or tendering process made public and when?

* If the procurement/tendering process for the pods - or goat pens - were not made public, what is the reason?

* Why wasn't Carnival budgeted and where exactly were the funds for it released from?

Also, I was very disappointed that the Calypso Monarch and Extempo competitions were cancelled, but then there is no doubt this rush for a Taste of Carnival was badly organised. Why can't these competitions take place in October with Tobago's pending Carnival - as well as the International Soca Monarch?

Once all is well, after Easter, people should be able to host a variety of cultural, sporting, fashion events, etc and we should be able to have more of a return to normalcy.

Calypso has never been given the type of treatment or respect needed and there must be succession planning to get the younger ones involved.

I recall that someone wrote a letter to the newspapers a few years ago for a retro monarch. I suggest this be considered, at which iconic songs can once again be heard. We must do more to preserve those songs and pay tribute to our icons before they pass on.

We hardly see people writing songs like the legends did in the 'old' days.

J ALI

via e-mail

The post Hold calypso competitions in October appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.