THE sun eventually made itself felt, as crowds thronged to Victoria for the annual Independence Day parade. Many had feared that the weather, which had been unpromising all day, would spoil the fun. The parade is by now a tradition and the main event to commemorate the Seychelles’ National Day, no matter how often the dates have changed. Since 1976, the National Day has changed four times- from 29th June (Independence Day, to 5th June (Liberation Day- later abolished as a National Holiday), to 18th June (later deemed Constitution Day) and right back to 29th June.
It all depends on who holds power at the moment in time. Initially, it was the country’s Independence Day from being a British colony to a nation under its rights. There was a coalition government which did not last even through its first anniversary, as a result of the 5th June 1977 Coup d’état by France Albert Rene. The government was overthrown, and a one-party system was installed, which would last up to 1993, when the country returned to multiparty democracy. During that period, under the late President Albert Réné, the 5th of June became National Day, also known as Liberation Day.
After the return to multiparty democracy and with the Constitution of the third Republic ushered in, the day that this all-important document was adopted by the Seychellois electorate became yet another important date in June. 18th June was Constitution Day, and under former President James Michel, it became the National Day.
When Michel abdicated power, as his party lost control of the National Assembly in the 2016 elections, Danny Faure, who was his Vice president and running mate, replaced him as per the law at the time. Forced into a cohabitation, former president Faure soon found himself comprising on many fronts and amongst them, June 29th returned as the country’s National Day.
With one year to go before the golden jubilee of statehood, one had expected that this year’s parade would be spectacular, but instead it was rather déjà vu despite the fact that those marching gave their best. There was a reduced number of platoons participating, and a sense of tiredness, most probably due to nonstop rehearsals during the final week, was visible on the faces of many of the participants. Even the National Brass Band seemed less lively, but this was most likely due to the sombre dark blue of their uniforms, which the golden tassels did not do much to alleviate.
The youths were really the ones who stood out the most, be it the Young Citizens’ platoon, or the President’s Awards one or the Scouts platoon, they had more zeal and energy in their marching than their elders. The UAE brass band as well as the Indian Navy one, both of whom are usual partners in the parade, did their part to liven up the atmosphere, but it was the daredevil motorbike riders from Bengalore India who stole the show with their captivating performances, which had the emcees begging the public to not emulate at all costs.
Once again this year, the President’s Speech was pre-recorded and aired over the media early during the day, so there was no speech at the parade. While nobody missed anyone delivering a speech during the parade, being just broadcast over the media meant most people paid absolutely no attention to the speech until it featured in the 8 p.m. news.
“All in all, it was a lukewarm affair. I enjoyed the agricultural show much more; there was so much to see. However, I did notice that the demeanour of the President when he was inspecting the Guard of Honour was somewhat off. It looked as if he was bored. He lacked the poise and calm of former President Faure, I’d say!” John, a young father who had taken his children downtown to watch the parade, said.
“I did like the motorbikes. They were great, and I saw my friend in the platoon saluting. She looked smart,” his son Alex said.
