Pan Trinbago will participate in Tobago Carnival after the Tobago House of Assembly settled the organisation’s outstanding payments, with its Pan and Powder event scheduled for October 31 and dedicated to the late Mighty Sparrow.
Pan Trinbago Tobago Region chairman Kadion Moore announced the decision at a press conference on Wednesday, thanking Tourism Secretary Zorisha Hackett and Tobago Festivals Commission Limited (TFCL) chief executive officer Mr Cowan for resolving the payment issues.
The announcement comes after Pan Trinbago president Beverley Ramsey-Moore told Guardian Media on Monday that the organisation would boycott the annual festival over outstanding payments of $1.7 million for last year’s Pan Omega and Pan and Powder events.
Ramsey-Moore said the decision was made by the Tobago region and fully supported by its Trinidad counterparts. She said members had incurred significant costs preparing for Pan Omega 2026, scheduled for October 24, but would not take the stage while outstanding balances remained unpaid.
However, Moore confirmed that the organisation would now take part in the festivities, with Pan and Powder scheduled for Carnival Saturday night. Pan Omega will not be held this year.
“We will be doing it in tribute to the Mighty Sparrow. So you can expect the streets of Scarborough to be filled with the energetic sound of the national instrument,” he said.
Moore said the steelbands would be tasked with playing the music of the late calypsonian.
He thanked Hackett and Cowan for addressing the outstanding payments, saying they had held numerous discussions before reaching the agreement.
Hackett said settling the debt had been a commitment from the outset, adding that the commission made the payment 24 hours ahead of the agreed date.
She acknowledged that Moore had been forceful in pressing the THA to address the matter but said there was no ill will between them.
“You had to do what you had to do and I had to do,” Hackett said.
She said the THA remained committed to supporting steelpan, describing it as an important part of a successful carnival.
“It doesn’t mean we don’t love and respect our national instrument. And we’re going to continue to get that support from us as a Tobago House of Assembly,” she said.
Hackett also outlined the wider financial challenges facing TFCL, saying the commission’s outstanding debt had fallen from more than $29 million to just under $5 million by last week.
She said the debt had accumulated from the commission’s first carnival, which took place at the beginning of a financial year and consumed a significant portion of the festivals allocation.
“One of the conversations we had and one of the decisions we had to make early on was to more or less decide we’re not going to have a jazz-like event this year,” Hackett said.
She said the decision disappointed stakeholders but was necessary to help the commission reduce its outstanding payments.
Hackett said the commission had spent the past nine months reducing the debt while continuing to fund other events, including diving activities and under-16 cricket.
She said the THA had approved a budget covering every festival it planned to host during the year, including National Carnival, Easter activities, the Tobago Heritage Festival, the Tobago Blue Food Festival and Tobago Carnival 2026.
The allocation for Tobago Carnival is $12 million.
Hackett said the commission continued to balance funding upcoming events with clearing outstanding payments, but the ultimate goal was to eliminate the debt.
“The real, real success story would be taking it all the way down to zero,” she said.
“The work continues. It doesn’t end until we get that down to zero.”
She said she was committed to working with Cowan and his team to prevent the debt from becoming a recurring problem.
Hackett said Chief Secretary Farley Augustine and Secretary Petalann Roberts had also committed to helping clear the outstanding payments, so the commission could organise events without the burden of unpaid bills from previous festivals.
She said she had proposed calling on stakeholders after the carnival period to submit any outstanding invoices that might have been overlooked.
Hackett said some debts could predate Cowan’s appointment to the commission about two years ago and her own appointment as tourism secretary on January 26.
“We want to ensure that we’re very tight on our books, and I’m going to be making that call. Bring in your debt. Let’s settle the debt and start from ground zero,” she said.
Hackett said the intention was to ensure stakeholders were paid while the THA continued to promote Tobago Carnival and support the island’s festivals and events.
