Sapna Budhrani has been the president at NICH since April 2018, and, against expectations, she survived the transition from UDP to PUP, one year ago - and Culture Minister Francis Fonseca even said that she enjoyed his full confidence.
But, things have changed, and rumours have been swirling for weeks that Bhudrani is on her way out. Her contract will expire soon, and today Fonseca confirmed that it will not be renewed.
Of course, most would chalk this up to cld political calculus, but the minister says it's not that at all, but rather about what's best for NICH.
But the president's seat isn't as coveted as it may have been before the pandemic, since the severely reduced revenue stream from tourist sites has cut NICH's cash flow to a trickle.
And while tourism is picking back up again, the new president will still be operating on a much lower salary. Here's how the minister put it:
Hon. Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education
"The president's contract will not be renewed. The president is on vacation right now. Her contract will not be renewed when it expires. You know, we've had no discussion yet about any replacement. We're working with the board of Trustees, the board of directors, sorry. And we will make that determination in the next few weeks."
Reporter:
"What's the rationale for the contract not being renewed?"
Hon. Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education
"No, just the president had a contract. Her contract is coming to an end and we want to move it in a different direction. I've got a very good working relationship with the president and you know, she has served us well and I'm sure she will continue to work with us in culture in some meaningful way. But we want to move in a new direction."
Courtney Menzies:
"Do you find that it'll be easy to find the new president, considering that NICH is not making half as much money as it was making before?"
Hon. Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education
"No, no, no. Well, that's one of the things we. Anybody who comes on board will have to understand and appreciate that, you know, whatever contract we can provide. I will have to be skilled scale down to reflect the conditions, the economic situation at NICH. So that's important. So no, I mean, it's never easy to identify, you know, the kind of persons we want. The president is appointed by the Minister of Culture and I want to make sure that I appoint someone who understands our vision for culture and has a strong commitment to building that culture but also understands the importance of building back up NICH after, you know, the very serious crisis that it has gone through over the last two years. So it's important work and we'll have to take our time to identify someone."
Bhudrani could not be reached for comment and is reportedly on vacation.
