Pan Association Promises Elections by June in Response to Discontent from Member Bands
The Antigua and Barbuda Pan Association has committed to holding elections by the end of June 2025 following criticism from two of its member bands over alleged breaches of the Association’s constitution.
In a statement released on Saturday, the Association said it had begun discussions on a convention to advance pan-related business and confirmed that elections would take place within the coming two months.
The release follows an open letter from CUB Hells Gate and Panache Steel Orchestras in which the bands accused the Association’s Central Executive of failing to comply with its constitution, including the failure to convene elections since 2019.
The Association said it had convened a meeting of panorama band captains on 4 April, which yielded “a positive outcome”. It acknowledged, however, that two bands expressed dissatisfaction, arguing that the Association no longer had the legal authority to organise such meetings.
“The issue of an ABPA election at the said captains’ meeting was discussed and it was decided by seven bands, Panache included, that this exercise will take place no later than the end of June 2025,” the statement read.
Signed by representatives of seven member bands—Ebonites, Westside Symphony, Gemonites, Halcyon, Harmonites, Original, and the Association’s President Patrick Johnson—the release stressed that preparations were already underway in keeping with the body’s current rules and regulations.
The Association also pushed back against what it described as efforts to undermine its leadership. “The ABPA is committed to see this process through with pride and dignity, despite the effort of the disgruntled bands who seem to be on the path of destabilising the effort and the Body for their personal interest,” it said.
The move is the latest development in a widening rift within the pan community. In their letter, Hells Gate and Panache claimed the Central Executive had failed to uphold the Association’s aims and objectives, neglected its financial auditing obligations, and stalled on Friendly Society registration—a process required for formal legal recognition.
While the Association has now set a timeline for elections, questions remain over internal cohesion as bands prepare for the 2025 National Panorama.
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Those two bands although right is not looking at the big picture. Any infighting can set back the gains of pan.
This will not benefit any. Work together, keep the unity and achieve what’s needed through friendly negotiations.