President Dr Irfaan Ali this morning announced that the PPP/C Government will double the payments for all the local artistes who performed at the various ‘One Guyana’ shows during the inaugural Cricket Carnival.
The Head of State made this revelation at State House where he engaged the artistes and other stakeholders who participated in the Cricket Carnival events.
According to Ali, he is proud of the talent displayed by Guyanese during the two weeks.
There were some 89 local artistes on the ‘One Guyana’ stage and according to the President, the government stood the cost of production while corporate sponsors were brought in to buy the tickets.
He added that all of the monies earned – $6.9 million in total – went to those 89 artistes, whose payments ranged from $100,000 to $300,000.
“But as your president and having committed that I always want better for you and I want more for you, after reviewing the entire CC and looking at ways at which we can further help you… I want to double what you get and the government is putting a further $6.9 million.”
This will see the artistes getting a minimum of $200,000 or a maximum of $600,000.
President Ali explained that the Cricket Carnival initiative was built to not only put Guyana on show and attract tourists but also showcase local talents.
As such, the Guyanese Leader bashed all those who have criticised the event and urge artistes to be bold in standing up for their talents.
“We are here to support you. We will defend you, we will stand up for you, we will promote you… This is what we are doing. We are also investing in the infrastructure but you have to help us… We have to all now become bold enough to tell those who continuously want to keep Guyana back that we are all for One Guyana now… All of us [must] stand up against the narrow-minded message or narrow-minded behaviour of [critics]…”
“I am not telling you to be political or embrace a common political party, I am asking everyone to embrace a common vision – united in purpose, vision, in strategy and in people,” he stated.
President Ali recalled that many were not confident that Guyana could pull off the Cricket Carnival but after the two-week success, which also includes hosting the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) semi-finals and final for the first time, there are many persons now – in the diaspora especially – asking for next year’s dates.
“We have been able to build a product that brings economic prosperity with it, artistic development, cultural development and one that I am sure will help us to improve and to be better.”
“We continue to be your partner in your own development and in the development of your culture, development of your talent in proportion of a One Guyana as a destination that is not only diverse by people and culture but is rich in talent and ready to explore on the international stage,” the president posited.
