Filenews 5 September 2021 - by Dora Christodoulou
Angry reactions are recorded since the morning in Paphos among the citizens since the revelation of the new coloration of the neoclassical building of the First Lyceum of Pafos. In the context of the ongoing effort to embellish and improve the neoclassical buildings of the historical centre of Pafos, which, among other things, provides for their painting in order to "freshen up" their appearance, the passing citizens were surprised to see the well-known white colour with which for decades the impressive buildings has been painted has been replaced in the case of the First Lyceum of Ethnarhis Makarios III with ... grey.
The protests and the voices against all those responsible have reached the dimensions of a "fire", with citizens and representatives of institutions calling for the immediate restoration of colour and the attribution of responsibility to the bodies that chose or allowed this change. They express deep concerns about the continuity, since the grey building of the A' Lyceum, is only the first of the neoclassical buildings that characterize Pafos that has been painted in the context of this improvement work. They warn that if similar chromatic "innovations" have been decided for the other neoclassical buildings, then the reactions will take a dynamic form.
The anger of the citizens of Pafos for the feeling that now exudes the historic building, erupts from the morning on social media against all those responsible. They hold responsible the Municipality of Pafos, the School Ephorate and the competent state bodies that approved the allocation of the relevant fund and the choice of colours, calling for the immediate lifting of the actions that have been taken so far and the confirmation that the neoclassical masterpieces of the historical centre of the city will remain in the white colour with which they have been erected and which is fully in line with the broader picture of the core of Pafos around the Municipal Palace.
Competent bodies of the municipal authority with which "F" contacted today, blame the responsibility for the decision to paint the First Lyceum grey, on the Department of Town Planning and Housing and especially to a specific part of it that deals with the maintenance of buildings. As they argued, the Municipality of Pafos had taken from the beginning the decision not to intervene for the colouring of the neoclassical buildings, but to leave the matter to the jurisdiction of technocrats and scientists.
"Following this, the Building Conservation Branch of the T.P.O.", the same sources said, "chose the colours for the "freshening up" of the neoclassical buildings and came in contact with the Aesthetic Control Committee set up by the municipal authority and consisting of scientists and technocrats of the sector".
These reports, however, do not seem to reduce the intensity of the reactions with citizens even raising the issue of the suitability of state officials who took such decisions. In their protests, they mention with obvious ironic mood that the next thing that the citizens of Pafos are expected to see, is the painting of the Column of October 28th or the ancient Greek style columns of the Town Hall Square in "fuchsia" or "purple" colour.
