Promoters angry over Govt
support for SummerFest
PHILIPSBURG--Promoters of Sweet Leroy Promotion have expressed dissatisfaction at what they believe is Government’s decision to give US $95,000 to the organisers of the third annual SummerFest. They want to know whether government’s support of promoters depends on party membership.
Island visitors staying at the small and large hotels/guesthouses will receive free tickets for next week’s SummerFest concert line-up that includes performances by international artistes Damien “Jr. Gong” Marley, Akon, Ne-Yo and Kirk Franklin.
The tickets were bought as a tourism initiative through funding from the Economic Recovery Fund (ERF). A total of US $95,000 was spent for about 5,000 tickets that will be distributed to the hotel/guesthouse activities desks around the island Monday.
The promoters told The Daily Herald Tuesday that they had watched in disbelief for the third straight year as SummerFest continuously managed to obtain large sums of money from government for concerts, while Sweet Leroy Promotion had to spend months knocking on government’s door only to be turned down in the end.
High on their list of concerns was the fact that SummerFest was designed to bring visitors to the island to spend “while government, through the Tourism Department, spent US $95,000 to buy tickets for visitors to see shows for free.”
According to the promoters, they have no personal problems with the organisers of SummerFest, but their concern is that the St. Maarten Day “St. Maarten Fest” for which they have continuously requested support from government is not getting that kind of attention.
In a statement the promoters said they had contributed significantly “year in and year out” to the island’s economy bringing chart-topping artistes to the island, which brought visitors from the Caribbean and beyond, giving them an undisputable record of being one of the better promoters on the island.
They also said other promoters had brought Spanish-speaking artistes to Carnival Village and had done extremely well, but they too were not in line for the support government gives to SummerFest, which they said had been a three-year flop.
“We are not saying that the support is not necessary for the SummerFest, but we are asking what criteria government uses to support promoters. Is it based on the success rate of the shows held and the number of businesses that benefit when we host shows, or is it based on whom we have as members of our organisation?” asked the promoters.
They have also asked that the public question why they have to pay US $40 to see a show while the visitors to the island get to see them for free.
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