President Kangaloo, Machel to host youth awareness events

PRESIDENT Christine Kangaloo has roped in soca star Machel Montano to launch a series of cultural events aimed at youth awareness, President's House sources told Newsday on Wednesday.

An earlier statement disclosed the collaboration, but gave few details.

It said that at Kangaloo's invitation, Montano visited her and her husband Kerwyn Garcia at President’s House on Tuesday.

"Mr Montano, accompanied by Mrs Elizabeth Montano and Ms Lisa Ghany, was invited to discuss a special project conceptualised by the Office of the President.

"Speaking on behalf of his team Mr Montano expressed his delight and excitement at being invited to be a part of this project and contributed some ideas of his own on how it could grow and expand."

The meeting ended with the Kangaloos and Montanos pledging to work together to bring the project to fruition in the near future.

Elizabeth Montano opted not to divulge details to Newsday, so as to not speak out of turn on a project initiated by the President.

Mrs Montano advised, "It is the President who has to elaborate. She's the one who will have to say the details."

President's House sources told Newsday the project was based on "arts, culture and the humanities.

"It is going to be a series of events. Mr Montano might not be in all. But it is a series"

Asked how soon the series of events would occur, the source replied, "We are still working out the details. Other parties, venues, and so on have to be worked out."

Newsday asked the purpose of the events.

The source said, "It's all in alignment with (the President's) outreach to young people in the humanities area and using the pan model and all those type of thing. If you refer to her (inaugural) speech you'll see she said those things.

"It's going to be an outreach to young people to lead them on the right path, away from all these negatives that are out there."

In her inaugural speech on March 20, Kangaloo expressed her intent to help TT's youngsters.

"For decades, there have been those who have been telling us that the discipline and the structure that the panyard brings into the lives of young people each year in the lead-up to Carnival, combine to create one of the most effective youth delinquency prevention programmes available in the country."

She said as president, she would be keen to meet with and listen to those voices, and use her official office to urge the adoption youth programmes using the panyard model, on a year-round basis.

"This is another aspect of the presidential future I envision – a future in which the Office of the President continues to collaborate with communities to explore, and advocate for, means by which our young people can be steered towards endeavours that are glorious and life-giving, and away from the allure of antisocial behaviours."

In 2012 Montano created a 13-track musical album called Going For Gold to mark TT's golden anniversary of Independence, sponsored by the then People's Partnership government reportedly for $5 million. It included artistes such as Montano, Chaka Khan, Isaac Blackman, Duane O'Connor, Karene Asche, Roderick "Chucky" Gordon, Neval Chatelal and Exodus Steel Orchestra.