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For­mer Min­is­ter of Cul­ture Ran­dall Mitchell has joined the na­tion­al de­bate over the can­cel­la­tion of this year’s In­de­pen­dence Day pa­rade, urg­ing the Gov­ern­ment to pro­vide a clear and trans­par­ent ex­pla­na­tion to cit­i­zens.

The Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar-led Gov­ern­ment re­cent­ly an­nounced that the an­nu­al pa­rade would not take place on Au­gust 31, cit­ing safe­ty con­cerns. The de­ci­sion has since sparked mixed re­ac­tions, with ques­tions raised about its im­pli­ca­tions for na­tion­al cel­e­bra­tions.

Mitchell, in a state­ment, said the pa­rade is far more than a rit­u­al and serves as a vi­tal re­minder of the coun­try’s his­to­ry and iden­ti­ty.