A public dispute over financing has broken out ahead of the 2026 Point Fortin Borough Day celebrations, pitting the borough’s sitting Member of Parliament against local council leaders over who is to blame for ongoing budget shortfalls. Despite the conflict, the ruling national government has confirmed the iconic festival will move forward as scheduled, with its official launch kicking off this Saturday.
In a social media video released Monday, Point Fortin MP Ernesto Kesar stated that the central government, which he represents, maintains full backing for the successful execution of the 2026 Borough Day. He extended an open invitation to Mayor Clyde James and the Borough Council to set aside political differences and collaborate to deliver a memorable event for local residents and visitors.
The festival’s administrative status shifted in 2025, when last year’s celebration was designated a national festival, moving oversight from the local borough corporation to the central government. Prior to that, planning and funding responsibilities rested entirely with local authorities.
Last week, Mayor James went public with the council’s financial woes in his own social media statement. He revealed that the 2026 budget allocation for festivals from the national government only totals $75,000, an amount he says is far too small to cover the event’s basic costs. Compounding the shortfall is the loss of long-time private sponsor Heritage Petroleum, which has left the Borough Council carrying an accumulated $300,000 debt from past events, much of which remains unpaid. James added that he had reached out to multiple national government ministries for emergency assistance but had not received any response, accusing the government and local MP of only offering empty “lip service” instead of tangible support.
Deputy Mayor Kwesi Thomas echoed these concerns, noting that while the full calendar of 2026 events has already been printed, it has not been distributed to the public due to the ongoing financial crisis. Thomas added that the council has yet to receive confirmation of funding from most national agencies, with the only exception being Atlantic LNG, which has stepped in to sponsor the popular Pan on the Move segment of the festival.
Kesar pushed back against these claims in his Monday address, pushing back the timeline of the council’s funding request as the root of the current shortfall. According to Kesar, the council submitted its funding proposal for 2026 in February 2026, when the required deadline for submissions was August 2025. This late submission left little time for processing and securing additional budget allocation, Kesar explained. He added that the time for budget negotiations was last year, when allocations were being finalized, not weeks ahead of the scheduled event.
Addressing the unresolved $300,000 debt from 2025, Kesar acknowledged he was not in office when the debt was incurred, but has already offered to work with the mayor to resolve the outstanding obligations. He claimed there are political actors who do not want the festival to succeed, solely for the purpose of shifting blame to the national government. Kesar confirmed he spoke as recently as Sunday morning with Minister of Culture and Community Development, who plans to release an official statement on the government’s commitment to the festival before the end of the week.
For Kesar, the top priority is supporting the people of Point Fortin, who rely on the annual festival to generate significant local income for small businesses, vendors and hospitality operators. He thanked the mayor and his council team for their work in planning the event, and reiterated that he remains open to collaboration, even after what he implied was a rejection of his outreach. “I offered my hand and it seems like they slapping away my hand. I will continue to offer my hand because my interest has always been the development of Point Fortin,” Kesar said.
Kesar also pushed for the immediate distribution of the printed event calendar, noting that independent promoters have already reported that most festival events are completely sold out. With Pan on the Move confirmed and thousands of attendees already booked to travel to Point Fortin, Kesar insisted there is no deception surrounding the 2026 celebration: “Borough Day is going to happen…Borough Day 2026—it eh no tricks, come down and get in the mix. It will be excellent.”
As of Tuesday, James has declined to issue any further public comment in response to Kesar’s social media address. Local media outlet The Express has confirmed that Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Khadijah Ameen is scheduled to meet on Wednesday with Point Fortin’s Mayor James and the leaders of all 14 regional corporations at the San Fernando City Corporation, where the Borough Day funding dispute is expected to be a top agenda item.