Trevor Alfred, who won a clutch of awards, was named Best Designer at this year’s Mashramani.
Meanwhile, Guyanese will be “Celebrating Mash 49 with victory in mind,” in keeping with the 2019 Mashramani theme which was revealed by Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Social Cohesion Melissa Tucker during the 2018 Mash awards last Friday evening at the National Cultural Centre.
The winning theme was submitted by last year’s winner Harry Narine, who in his description said, “After 49 years of hard work we must keep focused on our vision for all of Guyana.”
Meanwhile, Minister of Social Cohesion Dr. George Norton reflecting on this year’s organization and execution of Mashramani praised the staff of the ministry and all those who contributed to the success of the festival, more so since the celebration was incident free.
“We must acknowledge the fact that the planning and execution of all the activities were done entirely from fresh perspectives,” he said, before going on to mention both the new Director of Culture, Tamika Boatswain and this year’s Mash Coordinator Andrew Tyndall.
“You all played your part in making Mash 2018 one of the best we ever had and this is not because I say so, but because of what we had in the public…you heard about it on the radio, you read about it in the newspapers and generally that was the comment. Indeed this year’s Republic Anniversary Observances exceeded our expectations,” Norton remarked.
“We had our naysayers, we had persons who were saying that we could not be successful without them; others were saying it would be a complete failure, but I must applaud and thank the entire staff of the Ministry of Social Cohesion for rallying behind these celebrations and I must tell you that your hard work paid off,” the Minister added.
In addition, he commended the designers and musicians for playing their part in making Mash 2018 a success and committed to supporting them in the years to come as they continue to showcase their talents.
Norton also took the opportunity to encourage both the private sector and the general public to support the Mashramani celebrations in the years to come.
Boatswain in her remarks explained that of the 33 events listed on the calendar of activities for Mash 2018, 32 had been deemed successful.
She also moved to highlight new additions to the list of activities which received an overwhelming response from the general public, including the Junior Soca Monarch which was won by Dexter Copeland, and the Chutney Dance Competition where the Berbice Delight Dance Troup were crowned winners.
Likewise, the reintroduction of Mash Night which saw the judging of the King and Queen of the Bands and individual costumes, as well as, the Carib Soca Monarch which also created a buzz, as reported by Boatswain.
Meanwhile, a number of persons received awards for categories ranging from Best Decorated Parapet to Road March Winner.
While Vibert and Alexander Bell walked away with trophies for the Best Parapet, Carib Soca Monarch Brandon Harding also copped the Road March Title and the prize for Best Newcomer.
Several designers also received accolades for their designs used in the 2018 Mashramani celebrations. The award for Best Designer went to Alfred, whose designs won four categories, including the King and Queen of the Band’s titles.
Jovonski Thorne and Onica Joseph were awarded for their winning performances in the Junior and Senior Calypso Monarch Competitions, respectively, while Chit Mohanlall Singh, better known by his stage name of ‘Bunty Singh,’ walked away with the 2018 Chutney Soca Monarch crown.
With regard to the Children’s Costume and Float Parade, Smyth Street Nursery, Graham’s Hall Primary and South Ruimveldt Secondary were awarded first place in their respective categories, while the students from the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Hinterland Scholarship programme retained their first place position in the category of Other Children’s Institutions.
Meanwhile, in the Seniors’ category of the Costume and Float Parade, the Ministry of Natural Resources, Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, and GTT Pulse band received awards for their presentations.
