THE anticipated gospel picnic ends in disappointment.
A gospel picnic called Summer Gospel Picnic was meant to be held at Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town on Monday, 16 December, but it never took place.
It’s reported that attendees had to be sent home upon arrival as the organisers allegedly didn’t meet the outdoor event requirements, resulting in their permit being revoked.The picnic boasted top gospel musicians in its line-up, including the likes of Khaya Mthethwa, Sindi Ntombela, Xolly Mncwango, Takie Ndou, Keke, and Putuma Tiso. It was organised by gospel musician Lusanda Beja of Beja Music.”Due to some unfulfilled standard service requirements and protocols for an outdoor event, the city decided we could not proceed with this event and therefore retracted our permit.
“We acknowledge the oversight to have been on our side and despite our best efforts to salvage the situation during the day of the event, we were unable to resolve the issue on time and regret the idea that we had to send people back home,” said Lusanda.
He said from the bottom of their hearts, Beja Music apologises to anyone who attended and can guarantee that this is a big lesson.
“All the artists scheduled to perform had arrived in Cape Town and were on standby on site as promised. Everything was well on time, and we were ready to let people in at the scheduled time before the city requested that we put things on hold as they communicated their concerns with management,” he said.