De la Espriella’s ‘White House’ is located inside a military battalion in Barranquilla.
The far right will inaugurate its control of the Colombian state with a display of extravagant aesthetic ambitions in line with the traditional image of a “Banana Republic.” The Colombian presidency will be headquartered in the Caribbean city of Barranquilla, in a neoclassical Republican-style building.
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From there, beginning Aug. 7, Abelardo de la Espriella will exercise the presidency, which will be physically located inside Paraiso Battalion, within the facilities of the National Army’s Second Brigade.
Currently, dozens of workers are striving to have the facilities ready for the arrival of the far-right politician. The building dates back to 1938, and over the course of nine decades it underwent renovations that went largely unnoticed by Barranquilla residents in order to adapt it to the needs of the time.
The architectural renovations now underway, featuring gypsum wallboard panels that give its facade the appearance of a tropical “White House,” have already drawn criticism. Images circulating on social media showing the progress of the work reveal that the red-roofed building will feature a pediment supported by two columns bearing the inscription “Presidency of the Republic.”
“This is far too banana republic! Abelardo de la Espriella’s eagerness to break with democratic traditions exposes his very dangerous frivolity,” said Carlos Carrillo, who served as director of the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) under the outgoing administration of President Gustavo Petro.
The building, located on open land adjacent to the tourist area of the Malecon, middle-class residential neighborhoods and the industrial zone along the Magdalena River, has several underground levels designed to withstand attacks and fully equipped so that the president and his staff have access to all security protocols.
One of the standout sections of this bunker is the “situation room,” a space equipped with communications and video surveillance systems where the president and his team will be able to meet with military and police commanders to receive intelligence briefings and monitor operations in real time.
In 2011, the Ministry of Defense and the Atlantico provincial government invested in the building to convert it into the headquarters of the Caribbean Joint Command, from where operational command was exercised over Army, Navy and Air Force units deployed throughout northern Colombia.
Abelardo odia tanto nuestro patrimonio y símbolos que ahora quiere hacer una Casa Nariño en Barranquilla que se parezca a la Casa Blanca. pic.twitter.com/s8rhHla9Oi
— U L D A R I C O (@UldaricoRamire) July 30, 2026
The text reads, “Abelardo hates our heritage and symbols so much that he now wants to make Barranquilla’s Nariño House look like the White House.”
Private Companies Finance the Architectural Renovations
As work progresses at full speed, concerns have been raised by various political sectors regarding the source of the funding for the renovations.
Sen. Orlando De la Hoz, a native of Barranquilla and a member of the Historic Pact, the political party that lost the presidential election to De la Espriella, described the renovations at Paraiso Battalion as “folkloric and improvised” and demanded “clarity regarding the origin of the resources,” since the work does not have financial approval from the Ministry of Defense.
In response, Atlantico Gov. Eduardo Verano De la Rosa clarified that his administration “has not allocated funds” for the project, but has “limited itself to coordinating contributions from private business leaders in the region, including construction materials, aluminum carpentry and window systems.”
“We have not invested, but we have coordinated a series of contributions made by private parties. For example, glass doors were needed, and they have been provided by business leaders such as the Daes brothers of Tecnoglass,” Verano De la Rosa said in recent days.
For the opposition, the fact that business leaders are covering the costs of the new presidential office could create conflicts of interest.
The details of the architectural renovation remain confidential, but the president-elect’s inner circle has indicated that, in addition to Paraiso Battalion, the former Customs House, a restored historic building in downtown Barranquilla, will serve as the venue for Cabinet meetings and receptions for national and international delegations.
The decision to govern from Barranquilla is part of De la Espriella’s decentralization plan, which includes alternate government headquarters in Medellin and Cali, and the use of San Carlos Palace in Bogota as a presidential office, while leaving the Nariño House, the current seat of the executive branch, as a museum.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
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