Former Junkanoo Grand Marshal, Dwight Rolle was dismissed from that position by the National Junkanoo Committee (NJC) on Monday.

Rolle spoke with reporters about his dismissal on Tuesday. He said, “if you want team players it ain’t ga be me. If the rules say don’t go left, you can’t ask me to go left, you do it yourself and that’s what I stand by. The management team gives the rules and regulations. The NJCs, the JCNPs, whoever else makes the rules and regulations. They give the rules and regulations to the task force team and our job is to execute law and order, not favors or how we feel or what we think. The law say X, we stand by that. The law say don’t do, we don’t do. We’re not here to please no particular group or no particular individual. We’re only governed by the rules and regulations.”

The NJC responded to Rolle’s comments in a press release on Tuesday afternoon. They said, “the chain of command during Junkanoo parades is unambiguous. The PMT governs the actual running of the parade. While the Grand Marshal is afforded discretion in executing duties, that discretion operates under the authority and direction of the PMT. When the PMT issues a directive intended to improve parade flow or prevent operational challenges, it is not within the remit of the Grand Marshal to defy that instruction. Why this directive was not followed is a matter for another me.”

According to the NJC the decision to dismiss Rolle was “rooted in operational performance and adherence to established parade management protocols, not personalities.”