In the face of mounting criticisms, the principals in the C3 Seating Company, that has the government contract to provide bleachers for the Junkanoo parades and handle ticketing, maintain that they have embraced a wonderful opportunity.
That opportunity is what Junkanoo leaders are against, leading to some of them threatening to boycott the season.
There are four principals in the company, one of whom is Thomas Cleare Sr., the Vice President of Bahamas Welding and Fire Company and his son Edmond.
“We are confident that with our experience in the welding and manufacturing business, we are most qualified to present a safe and comfortable and attractive product,” a spokesperson told the Bahama Journal.
The company promises that its Junkanoo enterprise will employ almost 200 Bahamians.
Junkanoo leaders are up in arms over the five-year contract, at the end of which the government would own the bleachers. Some of them were offended that Youth, Sports and Culture Minister Neville Wisdom did not consult them before the decision was made.
“We share the Minister’s vision for Junkanoo,” the spokesperson said promising that the company will play a significant role in the upcoming parades.
The company plans to have an official press conference on Monday. It was postponed from Thursday.
Minister Wisdom explained that the members of the National Junkanoo Council (NJC) had requested more time to iron out some differences with the C3 Company.
In a late night meeting on Wednesday with Junkanoo leaders and the NJC, Minister Wisdom said that based on some concerns, the NJC asked him, to give them until Monday to settle some matters to ensure that Junkanoo could move smoothly.
Minister Wisdom admitted that the predicament is a challenging one.
“The real challenge for Junkanoo is being impeded,” he said during a press conference on Thursday. “We are as if, we were cutting off our own noses to spoil our faces.”
The main contentious issues, according to the minister, are ticketing, parade times, Junkanoo exposure, the judging system, security and the parade routes.
There are 37 Junkanoo groups that are scheduled to participate in the up coming parades.
Prize money this year totals more than $400,000, with the top groups vying for a $25,000 grand prize.
Minister Wisdom pointed out that government wants to move away from being involved in the transactions of Junkanoo. In the past, he said, the government provided street lighting, tents, fencing, seating and prize and seed monies.
“In the past times, there has never been a profit out of Junkanoo ticket sales and so that is a step in the right direction,” he said.
Last year, the Youth, Sports and Culture Minister came under fire for his involvement with the million-dollar bleacher contract to a Canadian company.
It led to the Junkanoo Report being tabled in Parliament outlining expenditures for the parades.
Minister Wisdom on November 13, made the announcement that C 3 had won the bid for the bleacher contract out of six other companies.
By Yvette Rolle -Major, The Bahama Journal
