New calypso association head promises inclusion
Expect the tenure the current executive of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Calypso Association (SVGCA) Inc to be an inclusive affair.
Such a projection has come from the associationâs newly elected president Earl Bennett.{{more}}
Accepting that he is simply an administrator and not a calypsonian, Bennett was installed at last Saturdayâs extraordinary general meeting of the association, staged at the Red Cross Headquarters in Kingstown.
âI am not a functioning calypsonian, so I am not here to sing; I am here to give administrative heft…. My vision is simple; we are a calypso association, it ainât no we and dem, is all ah we…. I am not an âI manâ, I am a âwe manâ… I donât intend to be gender-biased … I donât intend to be class biased,â Bennett stated.
âI am not in any top-down thing… I donât know it all…. If you want to see us succeed, give me your help, I am depending on you,â Bennett added.
Promising to bring to bear his years of experience with sporting and other organizations, Bennett implored the practising calypsonians to do likewise and listen to others.
âYou are the peopleâs voice and if you want an audience, public relations and promotion, you must bring your audience up to date; you must not believe you know it all,â he advised.
Bennett was placed to head the calypso association during the elections which formed part of the last Saturdayâs meeting. But like all of his supporting executive members, a vote was not required, as they were inducted unopposed.
Having been nominated by the Graduates, Dynamites and Upstage Experience, Bennett, vice-president Glenroy âHomeyâ Delpesche, secretary Cecile âLil Bitâ Murray, along with treasurer Shaunelle Mc Kenzie (retained) gained three of the five votes.
Through some administrative bundling, a motion was, however, moved by the On Tour tent to have Elvis âAbijahâ Abbey stand to contest the presidency, but he received no endorsement.
On Tourâs other nomination, Robert âPatchesâ Knights, will continue as the associationâs public relations officer, as he too had no opponent.
The heads of the five operating tents, which also include the Ptani set-up, will serve as committee members.
Last Saturdayâs meeting also heard the treasurerâs report, a report from the last secretary â Aubrey Burgin, which served as the executiveâs report.
Discussions also took place on the proposal to institute a new constitution for the association.
This was led by outgoing president Anne Miller.(RT)