ONE bad signal that would have sent the just concluded Abuja carnival to sleep forever would have been if the Professor Bakare Ojo Rasaki-led carnival committee had decided to wait endlessly for the usual provisional package from government.

Another worse thing would have been if there was no attempt to go back to the street concept of carnival float displayed during the 2008 edition of the event. And the worst, which would have projected Nigerians the world over as unserious people, would have been if the carnival did not even see the light of day.

But the best thing that characterised this year’s edition was the fact that within the limited time, financial constraint, which Professor Rasaki described as zero budget and low publicity, the 2009 Abuja carnival still thrilled visitors, guests and residents of Abuja from Saturday, November 21 to 24, 2009. To be frank, Professor Bakare needs to be applauded for thestructures put together to make the carnival a reality, even when some parts of the event witnessed poor response from the participating states.

Like the Durbar, which used to be the high point of the carnival where African magic and stunt are displayed, was absent this year, as only two states, Borno and Yobe, participated, with fewer houses and carmels. Meanwhile, day one was the mother of all days as the carnival train traversed over 14 kilometres in a procession from Garki village through Area 1, Festival Road amidst fun, drama, dance, acrobatic displays and cultural performance, which terminated at the Eagle Square, where contigents entertained tourists, visitors and guests.

The cultural market and exhibition, which also experienced low patronage, ran from November 21 to 24, at the FCT Arts and Crafts village, opposite Sheraton Hotel, Abuja. Also, the same venue hosted the youths and children’s programmes, with fascinating performances by different participating schools drawn from the FCT.

However, the cultural night and food fair was a night of colours, where the culinary delights of Nigeria’s diverse ethnic groups were on display to complement the cultural performance where the Anambra, Rivers, Nasarawa, Cross River States, among others, thrilled the audience to different electrifying dance steps. On November 23, the fun continued with a glamorous masquerade display from the participating states.

However, the absence of the one-man squad entertainment masquerade; the Igele, was conspicuously felt, even with the beautiful performance of the other masquerades. At the Jabi Dam, the mammoth crowd could not resist the water stunt performance by Rivers, Kwara, Cross River, Delta and Kebbi States, as they all cruised skillfully on the water ways.

The command performance, which was staged at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, featured two different sets of troupes, including the Egyptian, Ghanaian and South African national troupes, whose magnificent performance and flambouyant dress sense, style and musical instrumentation showed that culture connects despite differences of race, language and cultural norms and values.