The Arrecife City Council has suspended the celebration of the Day Carnival, one of the most important events in the capital's carnival program. This was announced by the Councilor for Commerce and Tourism of the City Council, Armando Santana, on Radio Lanzarote – Onda Cero.
“It has been decided with a criterion of responsibility and common sense”, said the councilor, who explained that it was last week when he held a meeting with the mayor and the technicians of the Area. “I let them know my opinion and that I was not in favor, nor did I want it to be celebrated in these conditions and in this pandemic situation”, he detailed.
Santana pointed out that this decision has not been made “on a whim”, but because sanitary measures cannot be guaranteed. “We are talking about an activity that concentrates more than 15,000 people in very few square meters”, he explained.
“People go there to have fun, and we cannot expect them to comply with the regulations, of masks and safety distance, regardless of the phase we are in”, Santana detailed, adding that the current situation in health centers is already “quite complicated” as to generate “more problems” with the celebration of the Day Carnival.
“I think that right now, and until the pandemic is over, it would be crazy to consider this type of party”, Santana sentenced, referring to this type of “macro-events” in which it is impossible to maintain the current protection measures against the coronavirus.
Regarding the rest of the activities scheduled for the Arrecife Carnival, Santana has assured that he “knows nothing” about it, since he affirms that it is “the responsibility of Festivities”. “I don't know what my colleague from Festivities is going to do in this case, the most convenient thing is to talk to her”, he pointed out, referring to the CC councilor Encarna Páez.
As far as his area is concerned, as organizer of the Day Carnival, Santana insists that it is not the time. “I think that now we have to focus on what really matters, which is to get out of this health crisis once and for all and there will be time for this type of celebration”, he sentenced.
“A carnival in June is not a carnival”
Regarding the decision that has been made in other municipalities of the Canary Islands, such as in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, where it has been decided to postpone the carnivals until the month of June, Armando Santana affirms that this option was put on the table in the Arrecife City Council, but it was discarded.
“A carnival in June is not a carnival”, considers the councilor, who is “totally in agreement” with the decision that was made. In this regard, he states that in any case “they would be other types of parties”, and that therefore “we would no longer be talking about carnivals”.
However, Armando Santana has assured that the Arrecife City Council has considered the possibility of celebrating different “tapas fairs”, or as they are now called, ‘Arrecife Gastronómica', during the year 2022. “Possibly in summer we will have that possibility if the health data reflects it”, Santana explained, adding that the Consistory has always had “the summer entrance” on the agenda.