Historical building 'Usgekolhu', which was so far managed by the Male' City Council, is now to be brought under government oversight, Chief Government Spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef (Mundhu) anounced yesterday. 

The move comes after a recent issue arose where vandals had painted graffiti over the walls of the heritage building. 

At yesterday's press briefing, Shareef said that it has been two years since the government requested the Male' City Council to hand over the keys to Usgekolhu, which is to be part of an interactive museum. He stated that the city council had earlier agreed to the hand over, but had failed to provide the keys to date. The city council has been directed to hand over care of the building on multiple occasions, both verbally and through writing, Shareef said. 

"So currently, the place is under the care of the city council. In reality, the issue isn't just graffiti. There are also signs that some people have illegally entered the premises and abused drugs in there. So as the care of the place has been neglected to this level, the government has now decided to step in and take over oversight of the building in line with set policies," Shareef said. 

Shareef said that the government needs to take ove care of Usgekolhu in order to proceed with the interactive museum project. However, it has become imperative to immediately take over oversight of the building due to the city council failing to appropriately handle care of the building, he added. 

Usgekolhu was formerly part of the royal palace, 'Bodu Gan'duvaru'. It is the last standing structure of the royal palace after the place was dismantled during the administration of former President Ibrahim Nasir. 

During former President Abdulla Yameen's term, the place was handed over to Advocating Rights of Children (ARC) to run a plaza titled 'Children's Heritage Plaza'. At the time, current president Dr Mohamed Muizzu was serving as Housing Minister. 

ARC failed to carry out the project, and by the end of Yameen's term in office, the place had been handed over to a restaurateur to run a cafe' with a digital library. The location was given over to the company in exchange for Blue Bay restaurant, located at the Artificial Beach. 

When former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih came to office, this agreement was voided, stating the building must be preserved as it is of historical importance. 

This administration's former Heritage Minister Adam Naseer Ibrahim announced in March 2024 plans to build an interactive museum including the Usgekolhu as part of its exhibits. 

Shareef confirmed these plans yesterday. 

"We are building an interactive museum there. A comprehensive, interactive museum," he said.