No word on Music Fest profits?
A scene from night-3 of the BVI Music Fest captured by BVI News photographer Andre ‘Shadow’ Dawson.
There is still no word on the costs associated with Music Fest 2024, although the event concluded over three weeks ago.
The festival, which was held from May 24-26, saw a relatively low turnout overall reportedly due to a widespread boycott by members of the community who were displeased with the government’s fiscal priorities. The ticket prices are also thought to have led to a low turnout.
Before the event was held, Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley had expressed confidence that the event would cause his government to either break even or make a profit and had promised to get the Central Statistics Office (CSO) to measure the economic impact of the event. It’s not clear whether the CSO actually recorded statistics for the festival.
It is also not clear whether Deputy Premier Lorna Smith has already requested the receipts of expenditures and profits from the festival as she had promised to do some weeks ago.
“I support the government’s agenda but I don’t think that the Premier expects me to agree with everything he does,” Smith had said in an interview with ZBVI Radio.
“I expect that the Premier will give a full account of the cost, the anticipated revenues and why the Music Fest is being afforded such a high priority.”
Since the conclusion of the festival, journalists and members of the public have been calling for the costs to be revealed, but the officials maintain that they need time to draw conclusions.
In the meantime, despite public sentiment that the event flopped, Premier Wheatley maintained that it was a learning experience that the BVI can improve on in the coming years.
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One thing I can say, WOW was the SHIZZLE. Can’t wait for the next one. The Promoters and everyone that put the event together did a banging good job. Kudos to Y’ALL.
This should be very simple:
How much was paid to the artists?
How much was paid for the stage, equipment etc and to who?
Who got the contract(s) to flatten the land and how much was paid? Was this put out to tender? Was this value for money?
How much was paid for advertising and marketing?
How much was generated in ticket sales?
This government continues to use public monies as though they belong to them personally, with absolutely no oversight or accountability. All whilst the toothless Governor watches on without doing anything. And just think how much they will be paid once they leave office under the Greedy Gill that they awarded themselves for all this hard work.
The artists that they hire from the outside walk away with the big money and bread well buttered with a side of jelly and the local got chump change aka the ends of the burnt bread. I support our local artists 100% especially Pascal and Jugo, real talent, nothing fake about those two when it comes to their talent and music.
Why does it have to be a learning experience that the BVI can improve on? The Premier is the one that did not listen, he is the one that should take the lick for this. So much of the taxpayers money washed down the drain. That was such a slap in the face and a lack of respect to the taxpayers in the BVI. Use their money to bring in useless artist from the outside and then turn around and expect the taxpayers to dip in their pockets and pay to get into the venue. That is really sad and disrespectful. Don’t waste your breath or wait to hear how much profit was made from the Premier’s music fest aka S..t show.
The Premier, the Tourist Board and DW should take the LICK for this. As a taxpayer, all of you can kiss my black A.. through the glass window in Banco Popular you damn fumbling bu***ons.
I agree, the Premier, Tourist Board and bald head Crome Dome DW can also kiss my A.. as well. They damn well know they use the peoples money like it was their personal ATM FOR THE FLOP FEAST AND HAVE NO INTENTION OF LETTING THE PEOPLE KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY WAS MADE FROM THE FLOP FEAST. WHY DO WE CONTINUE TO LET THESE PEOPLE F US OVER? ARE WE THAT DUMB, STUPID, COMPLICIT AND NIEVE?
WHY DO WE CONTINUE TO LET THESE PEOPLE F US OVER? ARE WE THAT DUMB, STUPID, COMPLICIT AND NIEVE?
ALL OF THE ABOVE!!!!!!!!
Good question….Yes, Why is it that all stand by and see us faltering horrifically by the wayside. I always thought BVI people had more balls than this!
Don’t forget the real McCoy boy
THE PREMIER, TOURIST BOARD AND THE HEAD OF THE BVI FESTIVAL COMMITTEE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR INFORMING THE TAXPAYERS/PUBLIC HOW MUCH PROFIT WAS MADE WITH TRANSPARENT AND HONEST RECORDS/RECEIPTS I HAVE A FEELING THIS IS GOING TO BE SWEPT UNDER THE RUG.JUST BE CAREFUL WITH WHAT YOU DO AND YOUR ACTIONS SANS AS YOU CAN SEE EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING IS GETTING EXPOSED IN 2024.
No lie, everyone and everything is getting exposed this year.
Who don’t hear will feel
The Party Premier told us this was about “events tourism”. A boycott from the community should not have made a significant difference.
The answer is either zero or a negative number.
I am F…ing livid as a taxpayer, perhaps I should go down to the USVI or the US to work and pay TAXES. At least at the End of each year, I will get back a refund check for the TAXES that I paid for the year. This place SUCKS ON EVERY LEVEL. THE CRONIES, FAVORITE , FRIENDS, FAMILIES AND A.. KISSERS IS THE ONLY ONES THAT BENEFITS ON THIS VOLCANO ROCK IN THE MIDDLE OF OCEAN THAT WE ARE LIVING ON.
I really doubt that we will ever be told how much this guy’s “learning experience “ cost us.
or, are you just waiting to hear the excuses , like the flood was caused by an old mattress and an old plastic inner drum of a washing machine ? Perhaps one of our premier’s puppets can encourage him to hold a free jam in the ghuts , then he mihmght might make an effort to clean them PROPERLY / they only try ah ting to give the public an impression / like the senerio with those hypocrites sitting down
in the street ,Take a good look at the GHUTS AND SEE WHATS IN THE GHUTS FOR YOURSELF , IF YOU AIN’T AFRAID ?
If this was hosted & promoted by a private company, the team involved would have been fired post haste for being abject failures. I want to see a full revenues breakdown including all associated costs – let’s see overtime costs for public workers who had to work on this non-essential farce.
Bring it on!!
There will be no accounting and the public will never know how the expenditure and income for the entire creepy and wasteful event went
Government should not be involved in this business. You are allowing everything to cave in around you now trying to take away private enterprise as your last straw. With the proper focus there are many more befitting enterprises that can be launched. How about Public Private Partnership Enterprises with Airport Prospect Reef Horse Racing Agri-Business Craft production and other projects. The prevailing conditions require outside the box thinking all the overseas travel should inspire ideas that can at least be discussed are we going to drown in a flood of stagnation.
Shouldnt the headline be no news yet on losses?
They too shame to say how much money they waste but the public has a right to know.
It is our money they are using and the public have a damn right to know.
We don’t need to wait on a report for this one…The outcome was obvious. This was a stunt to put money in the pockets of supporters.
The Idea is good but the Execution was terrible. They need to promote this for next year from now. The last minute thing can only work for local patrons.
The idea sucks. There is no money to subsidize parties. If it’s a profitable venture, let a private entity sponsor it.
If they come out with a number to the public, WE ALL KNOW THE NUMBERS ARE GOING TO BE AND WILL BE FUDGED.
The Premier let the people know FIRST CLASS PLANE TICKETS STARTS AT $8,000,-$11,000 or as high as $16,000 dollars?
Time to run the favorite move in the playbook and just stay quiet about it until the public and media forget to ask about it.
looking word on profits? ha, haa, haaaa.
Come with me to Switzerland and into namesless but numbered accounts.. There you willl see everything, with any luck.. Then go to the Orients, there you will be sure to findtraces if not evidence, but not names.
The Premier needs to take a hike, the Tourist Board needs to take a hike and the Chairman of the Festival Committee needs to take a hike as well. I am tired of them tapping into my tax dollars and doing constant stupidness. Well like the saying goes if the monies is not coming out of their pockets why should they care. Free monies at their disposal.
The Premier will NEVER take a hike willing…The people of the BVI uniting is the only way….
I agree, block the road to the Premier office with old tires , old cars and tree trunks so he can’t gain entrance to his office. Or pelt some big rocks through his office windows I bet that will run him out and he will take a fast hike out of office. LOL. It is only here in the BVI you all be playing miss mary Mack and ring around the Rosie pocket full of posey with the elected officials .
I wish you would also play a better role on the impact of the youths.
So far you’ve only been pushing party’s and festivals which breeds alcohol, drugs, sex, gang violence. The same youths attend these party’s and festivals because they’re young they want to enjoy themselves but send a better msg man. Bring more positive artists. Byron Messiah came here last year and big up a well known local drug group in the bvi and the crowd went wild. What kind of blasted msg you think then sending to the youths??
They will want to come big and invested in the drug transport life like them! They not gonna consider school, work, or living a stable life. They will chase after fast money, drugs , jewelry, guns, rum , party life .
These well paid entertainers ,teachers and role models of iniquity with our tax dollars are the same breed from the CARICOM septic that are here wall to wall in our priso with foreign policemenin a failed attempt to keep their wild dangerous behaviour in check And private guest houses fill up our courts and utilize our lawyers for free…All in all they are a brig to our lives via our economy..Give them birth control…they and their fatherless spawns are a plague
But how come people protest in the roadagainst the governor but will never do the same against the premiere? Block the road to his office, strike closing down airport and all government office for a week will get the governor to take action, we all need a little bit a cyndie in us.
True, they people need to do what they do in Jamaica, block the road to the Premier office with some of the derelict vehicles and some of the old fridge and stoves that people be throwing out. But, people here have no balls and they are paranoid of their own shadow. HOUSTON, WE HAVE A BIG PROBLEM BREWING IN NATURES LITTLE SECRET.
This and Lorna’s silence on just about anything is the signal to the UK that they have to come and stop the VI from staying on this road. We need change.
you filthy animals
Who is going to help us in the BVI. We are going through so much wrong in this place. People is afraid to stand up for their rights and when they stand up, they are send to the slaughter house. We need some serious help in this place. Who is going to stand up for the BVI and save us.
DW YOU ARE SO WHACK AND LAME WITH THAT BUCKET HAT PULL DOWN OVER YOUR FACE THINKING YOU LOOKING SO FLY POUNDING ON THE KEY BOARD . POM, POM, POM, POM. LMFAO.