The Executive Director of the National Cathedral Secretariat, Dr Paul Opoku Mensah has dismissed claims that some funds meant for the National Cathedral project cannot be accounted for.
Addressing the press on Monday January 2 after President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo visited the stalled project and donated an amount of GHS100,000, Dr Opoku Mensah said there are no missing funds that could not be accounted for.
“For purposes of clarity, I want to report a verbatim memo I sent on this issue dated 19th January 2022 and addressed to the Clerk of Parliament. The indication was that the government has given us GH₵339 million, and we could account for GH₵225 million leaving GH₵114 million missing.
“Here, I quote what I wrote to the Clerk. As we indicated to the Committee on Thursday, December 15, 2022, the total amount paid by the Government of Ghana to the National Cathedral project is GH¢339 million. This total is made up of the following: the amount paid directly to the National Cathedral Secretariat is GH₵225 million. The amount paid directly to the Consultant, Adjaye Associates & Design Team is GH₵113.040.54.67 million The two payments total GH₵339.003.064.86,” he said.
Dr Opoku Mensah “So, there are no missing funds that could not be accounted for. Secondly, the detailed account for these funds was provided to Parliament on December 15, 2022, by the Secretariat. In the case of the accounting from the Secretariat, this involves among others, total payments made to the contractor, and total payments made to the Bible Museum and Biblical Gardens Design Team.”
Fr his part President Akufo-Addo said that he is committed to ensure that the National Cathedral Project is completed.
He said the project will be completed to the glory of God.
“As I have said before, the National Cathedral will not just be another monument adorning the skyline of Accra, it will be a rallying point for the entire Christian community to come together and worship… I am therefore committed to working with the Board of Trustees to ensure the completion of this project to the glory of God,” he said.
It is recalled that Parliament did not approve the controversial GHS80 million that was earmarked for construction of the National Cathedral.
To that end, the amount was channeled into Communication and Road sectors.
Prior to this, the Ranking Member on the joint committee of Trade, Industry and Tourism, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, on Tuesday, December 20, 2022 dedicated a Minority voting decision to reject the budget estimates for the building of the National Cathedral as captured in the 2023 budget statement to Ghanaians.
He said the decision was a victory to all Ghanaians as previous allocations to the project were not properly accounted for.
Eleven Minority MPs as against 10 Majority MPs, therefore, voted to reject the GH¢80-million allocation for the continuation of the project.
By Laud Nartey|3news.com|Ghana