In a recent interview with local outlet Starnieuws, National Democratic Party (NDP) parliamentary faction leader Rabin Parmessar has characterized the intervention by Suriname’s Ministry of Land Policy and Forest Management (GBB) into controversial land allocations near the western border town of Apoera as a welcome but incomplete first step toward correcting systemic irregularities in state land distribution. Parmessar, who first raised the alarm about unscrupulous mass land allocation in Suriname’s National Assembly, argues that full transparency has yet to be achieved over the process.
The NDP leader’s investigation has uncovered that hundreds of hectares of state-controlled land have been allocated to private individuals over the past five years, a process he says was carried out through blatantly unlawful administrative procedures. Following his initial exposure of the issue, he called on GBB Minister Stanley Soeropawiro to reverse all improper allocations within a tight timeframe, and to return all wrongfully transferred land to full state ownership.
Parmessar stresses that the demand for reversal stretches far beyond the contested plots between Nickerie and Apoera, the region currently at the center of public attention. His review of land records also identifies improperly allocated island parcels in the Corantijn River region and the area surrounding the Suriname Reservoir, all of which he says must revert to state control. Additionally, he has drawn attention to agricultural land and experimental test plots managed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (LVV), which he claims were privately allocated between 2020 and 2025. These lands were originally reserved for public use and agricultural development, so Parmessar argues they too must be brought back under state management to serve the broader public good.
While Parmessar confirms he is satisfied that Minister Soeropawiro has taken preliminary action in response to his earlier calls for intervention, he emphasizes that the process of correcting the illegal allocations is far from over. He is calling on the GBB to publish a full, public inventory of every plot of land that has been privately allocated across all affected regions, alongside a detailed breakdown of all corrective measures that have already been implemented.
“This is only the first step,” Parmessar told reporters. “We need to know exactly which lands have been returned to the state, and what remains to be done to correct all the outstanding irregularities.” The GBB had previously announced it would cancel multiple pending statements of willingness for land parcels along the Apoera access road, and launch a new legal review of a large plot located in South Drain, moves that represented the first official government response to the scandal Parmessar brought to light.