The Tower Building, which was located on Independence Square, was destroyed, according to Stanley Raghoebarsing, Minister of Finance, in a conversation with a local media source. The media last week reported that thieves stole pieces of the copper dome from the tower of the grand Finance building. Additionally, forcible entry into windows and doors was discovered. This is in spite of the alleged government surveillance in close proximity to the nearby buildings. Raghoebarsingh considers this to be sad and claims that it does not dispel any claims that the ministry is to blame.
The minister said that actions have been taken in the meantime to hermetically close the building. Agreements have been made with the Ministry of Public Works to start with the provisional renovation of the building and that it will never again be possible for miscreants to enter the building. The building, which is a very prominent part of the historic city center of Paramaribo and has been added to the World Heritage List by UNESCO since 2002, will be empty from 2019. In that year, the Ministry of Finance moved to another modern building on Gompertstraat.
According to Raghoebarsing, the Tower Building is on the list for renovation and will be restored to its former glory at some point, as part of the Paramaribo Urban Rehabilitation Program (PURP).
