Dear Editor,
That Carifesta X would come up for an enquiry is no surprise. What is disturbing is that the Leader of the Opposition should seek to create a façade, involving the then PS of Culture, Youth and Sport the late Keith Booker, when he is well aware that the authority over the finances was taken away from Booker and placed in the jurisdiction of a PPP-CEO, Nigel Dharamlall, who knew nothing nor cared anything about culture. He subsequently was promoted to become the PS of the Amerindian Affairs Ministry, but had had the power to be a signatory at Carifesta X. The next person who would be able to answer some pertinent questions would be the then PPP/C Minister, Dr Frank Anthony. Paloma Mohamed was the Artistic Director (a lesser authority) who encouraged many of us in the Arts to participate, because essentially Carifesta was not a PPP concept and Guyana could not be made to look bad because of that administration. I submitted my play and it won as the signatory play for Guyana Carifesta X ‒ ‘The Legend of the Silk Cotton Tree.’ Of a prize of $500,000 I surprisingly learnt that I would only be paid $250,000. On investigation I was told that this was because the Queens NY PPP Group had asked a lady to submit a play which was declared not stageworthy, and she was paid half. I was paid the remaining $250,000. The media must insist on questions being answered by the CEO.
Yours faithfully,
Barrington Braithwaite
