Calabar stood still as the parade of the bands took centre stage in the ongoing cultural festival christened “Carnival Calabar.”
The parade, which saw the various bands in their colourful costumes dance through the 12-kilometre carnival route, also saw a large number of residents, tourists, and fun seekers cheering them on Thursday.
Declaring the parade open, Gov. Bassey Otu of Cross River said they were bringing back the carnival on a bigger platform where it could truly be referred to as an international brand.
Otu disclosed that the essence was to ensure that Cross River was really the preferred tourism destination in Nigeria.
Some of the tourists are from Lagos. The Calabar carnival was truly the biggest street party in Nigeria, he told NAN.
Mr. Adebayo Adeyanju, a medical practitioner who was attending the carnival for the second time with his wife and two kids, said it was really a spectacle to behold, adding that his kids were happy.
He, however, appealed to the government of Cross River to develop other tourism potentials in the state so that tourism would be an all-year-round activity, not just in December during the carnival.
“We have Obudu Cattle Ranch that is no longer functional; we have the Agbokim Waterfall and even Tinappa. All these great tourist sites were pushed down due to poor management,” he fumed.
Miss Clara Frederick, a Canadian who was visiting Calabar for the first time, stated that she was enjoying herself and would like to return in 2024 because she had received good treatment from the locals.
There is a massive presence of security officials in different parts of the city, especially along the carnival route, with vehicular movements effectively diverted, NAN reported.
This is to forestall a reoccurrence of the 2022 incident, where some people lost their lives and many were injured by a recklessly driven vehicle that ran into the carnival route.
The various bands are expected to interpret the theme of the carnival, which is “The Season of Sweetness.”
They are expected to perform at different adjudication points where they will be judged by a panel, and the winning band will go home with a cash prize.
Some of the competing bands in the event include the Master Blaster Band and the Seagull Band.
Others are the Diamond Band, Bayside Band, Passion Four Band, and Calas Vegas Band, among others.
