Nseobong Okon-Ekong
3 January 2009
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Lagos — Passion Four Band has won the 2008 Carnival Calabar parade thereby being the only band to win the competition three times.
Being the 2005 and 2006 winner, Passion Four Band won the Best overall position with 77.8 points while Bayside Band and Seagull Band won the second and third positions with 75.6 points and 74.3 points respectively on December 27, in the 12 Kilometre road show reputed to be the Biggest street Party in Africa.
The Carnival, which drew participants from within and outside Nigeria, also had some foreign band members parading, had Passion Four winning the Best Decorated Float with 24.4 points while Freedom Band which scored 19 points won the Band on the Move, Seagull Band with 21.4 points won Makeup/Costume, Passion Four Band with 12.1 points won the Best Interpretation of the Carnival Theme and the Best Reflection of Carnival spirit was won by Master Blaster Band with 7.4 points.
In the children Carnival, the second of its kind held on Boxing Day, Seagull Band won the first position with 70 points while Master Blaster Band and Bayside Band won the second and third positions with 58.6 points and 52 points respectively.
In another innovation introduced into the Carnival Calabar in both senior and junior categories, Navy School won the Best King in the non band category while the non-band Queen in that group was won by a Ma Ekeng School.
The Band King Junior was won by Freedom Band with 67.7 points while Bayside Band and Seagull Band were second and third with 66.3 points and 64.8 points respectively and the Junior Queen was won by Freedom Band while Seagull Band and Passion Four Band were second and third respectively.
In the Senior King competition, Passion Four Band came first with 76 points while Seagull Band and Freedom Band with Master Blaster Band were second and third with 71 points and 69 points respectively.
Passion Four Band won the Junior Queen position with 74.3 points while Seagull Band and Freedom Band were second and third with 73.6 points and 70 points respectively.
The King and Queen competition held on Christmas Day afforded the five bands namely Passion Four Band (Green) Bayside Band (Blue), Freedom Band (Yellow), Master Blaster Band (Orange) and Seagull Band (Red) displaying in the junior and senior categories while the non-band competition - was organized for the junior group.
Judgement of the parade was based on each band's ability to interpret the theme of the Carnival which was "Preserving Earth's Treasure Through our Cultural Heritage" in their colours, dance, decoration, costumes and floats.
The first band after the State Steel Band in the parade was Freedom Band led by Captain Henry Brisbe with its sub theme as "Vocational Evolution to Prosperity," with sub titles as Treasures of Sea, Treasures of Life, Treasures of Creation, Treasure of the Land, Treasures of a Nation and Treasures of Prosperity.
Next was Seagull Band with Senator Florence Ita-Giwa as its leader with two floats one carrying the forest including animals, water and fire while the second carried a forest with sounds made
Next was Seagull Band with Senator Florence Ita-Giwa as its leader with two floats one carrying the forest including animals, water and fire while the second carried a forest with sounds made by animals. This band which paraded some of Nigeria's best movie actors like Rita Dominic and Aki and Pawpaw had its sub theme as The Rain Forest, No Bush Fire, Street on Fire, Hell on Earth, Water and Fire, Hunger on Earth, Restoration of the Rain Forest and Paradise on Earth.
Master Blaster Band with Mr. Gershom Bassey as its leader had its sub theme as Wing of Peace, The Spirit of the Earth, Fruits of the Earth, Seeds of Eden, The Sea World, Birth of Rose, Flowers of the Sun, Fruits of Beauty, Lotus Flower, Precious Stones:- Emeralds, Gold Glitter, Black Coal, Rubis and, Silver, Battle of the Planet:- Revolution, Deforestation, Forestation and Flames of Fury, Human Confrontation:- Polio, Cancer, Malaria and, War, Hope of the Next Generation:- Noble Peace, Ghandi, Mandela, Turai Yar'adua, Lurther King, Mary Slessor, Golden revelers and Pinnacle Revelers.
Bayside Band, Donald Duke as band leader had a banner "The Sky is Blue, the Ocean is Blue, We are Bayside Band" had its sub titles as Splendor of the Earth, Hunting, Bush Burning, Deforestation, Gas Flaring, Rotational Farming, Traditional Tree Planting Methods, Cross River Clean and Green, Please Don't Litter and Men at Peace with Nature's Gifts as its float carried a Forest with animals and reptiles.
Passion Four Band with Mr. Chris Agibe as its leader, had a big banner "Colours of our Heritage" with its truck divided into three sections frontal Plantation (Yesterday Agro-Culture) middle Refinery, (Today Industrial Culture) back (Tomorrow Eco-Friendly Culture) save the earth. Its procession sub titles included Husbandry, Mid Day Scorch: Excess Crude, GEO, Info Tech, Yahoozee, Biomass, Wind Energy, Solar Energy, Happy People.
The Junior Carnival commenced from the Botanical Garden on Mary Slessor into Marian Road, Barracks Road and terminating at U. J. Esuene Stadium measuring about four kilometres.
Addressing the children after the Carnival at a party, the wife of the State Governor, Mrs. Obioma Imoke commended them for partaking and their parents for their support, promising that the next edition will be more organized and better.
Mrs. Imoke urged them to respect their parents and do their domestic chores at home as their support and encouragement for Government to continue with the Carnival.
The Carnival Calabar stretched for 12 kilometres with the participating bands going the normal route of kicking off at Millennium Park into Calabar Road, Mary Slessor, Marian Road, Ndidem Usang Iso, Anansa Road, Murtala Mohammed Highway and back to U. J. Esuene Stadium with four adjudication points to score them during the procession.
Sponsors of the Carnival First Bank Plc joined the parade as well as Lions Club, Rotary Club, Navy Band, Police Band, Civil Defence Band, Army Band and Church at Hephzibar Government Lodge Calabar in a non competitive manner.
There was also a Cultural parade which involved troupes from several states displaying and supported with cultural groups from 18 Local Government Areas of Cross River, Yoruba, Ibo, Hausa, Ibibio and Edo communities resident in the State. The procession commenced from the U. J. Esuene Stadium into Calabar Road, IBB Way, Ndidem Usang Iso, Atekong Drive Murtala Mohammed Highway and back to the Stadium a distance of about eight kilometres.
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