Uplifting Regrello – then SoE

IN THE waning days of 2024, we had two big learning opportunities. One came from a pannist; one came from a government press conference. Together they showed us opposing images of this country and the disconnect between the public and our politicians.

First came the good news when Joshua “D Pan Man” Regrello began playing pan at 6.28 am on December 27 at Wack radio station on Coffee Street, San Fernando. His bid for a place in the Guinness Book of World Records by playing pan for 31 hours quickly gained supporters with encouraging comments on social media.

Regrello's interlude from a bleak and bloody year with home invasions, robberies and over 600 murders was duly noted.

By the end of 2024, this country had more grief than joy and more questions than answers. What is really going on in the police service? Can we ever feel safe again? Are politicians too complacent? Are leaders ever held accountable for poor performances?

We desperately needed something uplifting, and we got that from Regrello. He reminded us of our creative spirit. That’s the reason he got such overwhelming public support.

Our tone-deaf leaders jumped on the bandwagon too. Members of government and opposition politicians all praised Regrello.

In the end, when Regrello completed 31 hours of playing pan, the Prime Minister seemed to understand the significance of Regrello’s accomplishment. The PM said, “Your dedication, perseverance, and passion for our national instrument have been and continue to be truly inspiring. You have created history and, more so, you have been able to unite our country and the diaspora during this holiday season…You have filled a nation with pride…”

But this wasn’t just about dedication to a national instrument, important as that is because pan was invented here. This was about the creativity and joy that once defined this country; the inclusivity, the “all o’ we is one” you read about in Earl Lovelace’s novel The Dragon Can’t Dance.

The underprivileged and marginalised people of this country invented pan. Their inventive spirit developed and sustained pan, even when they and pan faced society's disdain.

Regrello’s record should remind us of the bitter and violent history with steelband clashes only the police dogs of the day could control, as I discovered in the research for my book Police Dogs of Trinidad and Tobago.

Peace and progress eventually came through company sponsorship of steelbands. That collaboration between the rich and the poor put pan on another level, fostered national pride, and spread pan internationally.

Then a few days after Regrello elevated this country to a new hope-filled high, the government turned around and slapped a state of emergency (SoE) on the country.

Putting the army and police together is always a dicey decision. Giving the powers of an SoE to a police force we don’t trust and a commissioner we don’t understand is highly questionable.

Altogether, the overwhelming feeling that prevails is chaos. Then, to top it all off, Dr Rowley is a no-show at the press conference for the SoE. Once again, government sounded tone-deaf.

The Prime Minister needed to be at that press conference because this country – as it proved with its support for Regrello – needs hope, some joy and direction. We need to believe we have leaders who care about us.

All the excuses for the PM not attending – which I won’t even bother to repeat – killed what little public support there possibly was. Actions are important – whether an individual aims to create more history with pan or government decides to call an SoE.

What those actions symbolise is even more important. Symbolic acts can lift our spirits and sustain us in tough times. Empty rhetoric, divisive actions and insulting excuses erode faith and trust.

In a matter of days, we had two opposing messages in many forms: hope vs despair; trust vs mistrust; perseverance vs cop-out; caring vs uncaring.

We had glimpses of our history and our promise. We witnessed the best this country has to offer, and we experienced the worst we can imagine in back-to-back events, both played before a microphone to amplify two vastly different messages.

Then, we were left with more questions: What happened to the creativity that once defined and nurtured us? How did we become so disconnected and marginalised from each other and from the government? Where can we find the creative spirit to solve our nation’s problems?

This we know for sure: you can’t be tone-deaf and create harmony.