Governor Ayade Kicks Off Calabar Carnival 2022

17/10/2022

66 1 minute read

Cross River state Governor, Ben Ayade kicked off the first dry run for the 2022 Carnival Calabar, on Sunday, with the theme ‘Agro-Industrialisation’.

The event marked the return of the Carnival since the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020.

Talking about the theme, Ayade said it was carefully selected to send a message to the global community that Africans can depend on themselves for food.

The governor kicked against the high dependence for food by African countries on western nations despite the vast arable land God has blessed the continent with.

According to him, “Today, we have great reasons to celebrate because Cross River is gathered yet again, to invent the charm that characterises creativity.

“The theme for this year is agro-industrialisation and indeed, agro-industrialisation is the way to go.

“For any nation that is committed and serious, that is the way to go. The greatest insecurity is hunger. There is no insecurity more threatening to man than the insecurity of hunger.

“The war between Ukraine and Russia led to a scarcity of grains. This means that by the onset of 2023, the nation will be in big trouble.

“Therefore, I see a harbinger of scarcity, hunger and pain, grinding people to their zenith in terms of criminality and animalism.”

There were at least 4,000 participants on the 12-kilometre routes, while the seven bands that competed are, Seagull, Passion 4, Masta Blasta, Bayside, Freedom, Diamond, and Calas Vegas.

17/10/2022

66 1 minute read