An attempt to save this year’s Agricultural Exhibition has received a phenomenal response, according to the man behind the bid.

Jeff Sousa, One Bermuda Alliance MP for Warwick West, reached out on social media on Friday to urge the community to come together and help to hold the event as planned in April.

“My inbox is just lit up from every spectrum of society that wants to help,” Mr Sousa said yesterday. “I truly believe that our people would make it happen. There is no event on the Bermuda calendar that brings the community together like the Ag Show.”

Mr Sousa said various organisations run the different events, while schools and registered charities take care of the concessions.

“The catalogue has gone out already and everything is in place,” said Mr Sousa, who believes there is no reason why the show cannot go ahead as planned from April 16 to 18.

Mr Sousa said he understood that overtime pay was the main reason why this year’s show was cancelled.

“The exhibition takes place every year in April,” he said. “This is no surprise and we should be more prepared. We need to be more productive and accountable.”

Mr Sousa said he was encouraged by members of the community’s response to a call to try to save the event. He is calling on volunteers to help with the parking, ticketing and clean-up, and hopes to rely on donations and fundraising to cover any aspect that has not been organised already.

“The Agricultural Show is a big part of our community and culture and we need that,” Mr Sousa said.

“We as Bermudians are a community that receives most of its income through international business and tourism, but agriculture was something that really put us on the map and started tourism. We were the East Coast’s vegetable garden.”

Mr Sousa said it was early days and that he had to discuss the plans with his colleagues before any further decisions could be made. The cancellation of the 77th Agricultural Exhibition was announced on Friday as a cost-cutting measure agreed upon by the Bermuda Trade Union Congress and Government after three days of industrial action.

Premier Michael Dunkley said cancelling the event would result in savings of $400,000.

“It’s a painful decision and personally I am very supportive of the Ag Show,” Mr Dunkley said.

“But it involves a lot of overtime and we need to look at ways of saving.

“We looked at whether we could do it over one or two days, but in the end decided that we would suspend it for this year with a view to bringing it back next year.”