North Tongu Member of Parliament Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has said that the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) has no records on the National Cathedral even though it has been established that it is a public project.
At a press conference in Parliament on Thursday July 7, Mr Ablakwa said all projects, whether public or public-private partnership, should go through the procurement laws. However, he said, that was not the case of the cathedral.
The failure of duty bearers to subject the cathedral to the PPA laws, he said, is another sandal that has come out.
“This is another layer in this scandal. The Public Procurement Authority in response to our RTI request is stating unambiguously and very clearly that they have absolutely no records whatsoever on the construction of the national cathedral.
“If you read the Public Procurement Acta (PPA) Act 2003 Act 663, Section 14 1(a) it is very clear that whether is being funded in part or in whole that is whether partially or wholly with public funds, that project is subject to the procurement laws pf Ghana,” Mr Ablakwa said.
It is recalled that in bringing finality to the debate as to whether the project is state or privately owned, the National Cathedral Secretariat in a statement on Friday June 17 said “In his first official announcement on the project on March 6, 2017 the President underscored the nature of the project as a national cathedral for interdenominational worship services for the nation.
“Subsequent elaborations, led to three main reasons as the rationale for the project, namely i) gesture of thanksgiving ii) symbol of the Christian presence and contributions to the nation, and iii) a personal pledge to God. Of these three reasons, the personal pledge came to be associated with the Cathedral as a “private” project that needed to be developed without state support.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the National Cathedral is a National Monument, and thus a public, not private, project. Legally, the National Cathedral of Ghana is a state-owned company limited by guarantee, and was incorporated under the Companies Act, 1963 (Act 179) on July 18, 2019. We hope this brings to a closure the seemingly vexatious issue of whether the National Cathedral is a private or public initiative. The National Cathedral is a National Monument and Asset, and not a Private project. It is, however being developed in partnership between the state and the church.”
By Laud Nartey|3news.com|Ghana