By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

TEN Junkanoo groups, including the iconic Saxons, Roots, and One Family groups, have thrown their support behind the Junkanoo Corporation of New Providence (JCNP), rejecting government claims that the overwhelming majority of groups want the National Junkanoo Committee (NJC) to manage the parades instead.

At a press conference yesterday, JCNP chairman Dion Miller accused the government of using its “political appointees” on the NJC to destabilise and politicise Junkanoo. He insisted the JCNP would not be sidelined, pointing to the line-up of established groups that remain under its banner.

Those groups include the Saxons, Roots, One Family, The World Famous Valley Boys, The Mighty Eagles, Redland Soldiers, The Original Congos, the Nassau Independent Junkanoo Association, and the Bahamas Independent Junkanoo Association.

Suggesting the JCNP expects a significant rupture in the composition of parades, he said the supporting groups will compete under the JCNP’s new “League of Champions” banner.

The clash erupted after a recent NJC poll reportedly showed a 19–2 vote in favour of the NJC managing this year’s parades, according to Youth, Sports & Culture Minister Mario Bowleg. In a statement yesterday, the ministry said it “thanks the groups for their confidence and will proceed in the direction they have indicated, guided by the mandate they have given to the NJC”.

Mr Miller dismissed the poll, calling it “Donald Trump type numbers”, and claimed anyone present at the meeting was allowed to vote.

He said that for more than two decades, the JCNP had built the parades into “cultural juggernauts” through partnerships with corporate Bahamas and the commitment of Junkanooers nationwide, only to see “repeated and deliberate attempts” to undermine that work.

Saxons chairman Toby Austin said his group sees no reason to abandon the JCNP despite its flaws.

“Anytime there’s rules and something to vote on, you always come to the JCNP and be a part of that system,” he said.

The World Famous Valley Boys chairman Brian Adderley called it “foolhardy” for groups to disassociate from the JCNP, while One Family chairman Vernon Rolle criticised the NJC poll, saying some groups were not invited to participate.

The standoff comes as the Davis administration pushes its draft National Junkanoo Authority Bill, which would create a statutory body to oversee parades and funding. The JCNP has already accused the government of using the legislation to strip it of authority.

Mr Miller also linked the current turmoil to a split in the Valley Boys last year, claiming the government took sides by leveraging the connections of The Way Forward Valley Boys leader Trevor Davis, the brother of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis.