The PNM's Tobago Council has condemned statements made by Multiculturalism Minister Winston "Gypsy" Peters in respect of a second Carnival in Tobago. The council stated, " The display is an obvious and alarming contempt for all Tobagonians. Minister Peters made it very clear that although discussions with the Tobago House of Assembly were ongoing, he had 'his work to do' and could not wait on the assembly, so he had made the decision regardless of the assembly's position.
"Tobagonians must be aware that an acceptance of that approach makes the Tobago House of Assembly almost irrelevant and returns Tobago to a place that we had left and arguments that we had won, years ago." The council added: "It is even more sinister when Minister Peters argues that as a Minister of Arts and Multiculturalism in Trinidad and Tobago, he has the right to determine what happens in any part of the country. "This debate is not whether Tobago should have a second Carnival in October. It must remain focused on the threat to the assembly's responsibility."