Calabar wears new look ahead of carnival
The capital city of Cross River, Calabar, is wearing a new look ahead of the commencement of the 2023 edition of the Annual Calabar Carnival, scheduled to begin on Friday.
Supreme News reports that in a bid to ensure seamless movement, the state government is putting finishing touches on the rehabilitation of major streets and roads in the city.
While drainage systems across Calabar Municipality are being desilted, waste managers are also working around the clock to rid the streets and roads of waste.
The lawns on major roads and streets, especially on carnival routes, have received the attention of the landscapers.
The aesthetics of Calabar have been further enhanced with the reactivation of street lights on major roads and streets across the municipality.
The government is also matching word with action to organise the best carnival since its inception in 2004 by carrying out rehabilitation of junctions in the city.
While the junctions have been adorned with lightning and Christmas decorations, the foremost Millennium Park has been transformed to signpost the commencement of the carnival.
The decorated junctions include Eleven Eleven, Mary Slessor, Calabar Calabar, Effiete and Etta Agbor
Mr. Austine Cobham, Executive Secretary of the state’s Carnival Commission, had recently disclosed plans to make the 2023 edition of the festival the best organised in history.
Cobham had disclosed that four countries—South Africa, Brazil, Turkey, and Egypt—would participate in the carnival.
He further said that 26 states of the federation had also indicated interest in being part of the annual carnival.
He assured that adequate arrangements had been put in place to ensure the security of lives and property before, during, and after the festival.
He said that the impact of the 32-day carnival would be felt across the states and not just Calabar, the capital city, alone.
“We are working to ensure that this year’s edition will be a record set in comparison to previous editions held since 2004.
“While we are introducing new events for the carnival, we are also reintroducing some aspects of the carnival that had been stopped. For instance, the children's carnival is coming back after 10 years.
“Again, concentration will not just be in Calabar alone; the central and northern parts of the state will also be made to feel the carnival.
“Just like we are lighting up major roads and streets in Calabar for the festival, the same will be done in the central and northern parts of the state,” he stated.
Supreme News also reports that, as part of the plans to ensure seamless movement in and out of Calabar, the state government inaugurated additional aircraft on Tuesday to boost the fleet of the state-owned airline, Cally Air.
The Governor, Sen. Bassey Otu, had said the Boeing 737, with the previous plane, would from Thursday be flying from Abuja and Lagos to Calabar during the 32-day carnival.
The annual carnival, which started in 2004, has taken place every year, except in 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 lock down.
