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National Cathedral: Tell us how you’ll retrieve our money – Ablakwa to Bawumia

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 13:40:32 +0000

The Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, believes that Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, should focus on recovering funds paid for uncompleted work on the National Cathedral project.

During an address to the clergy in the Greater Accra Region, Vice President Bawumia called for collaboration between government and the church to raise funds to complete the National Cathedral.

He stressed the importance of the project for Ghana, noting his personal contribution to its construction.

“The National Cathedral is very important for Ghana. I’ve contributed personally to its construction. The church needs to collaborate with the government to find a way forward. Let’s not say it’s impossible; let’s come together and figure out how to complete it,” Bawumia stated.

In response, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa criticized the Vice President’s approach, insisting that attention should be given to retrieving the $58.1 million that was allegedly misappropriated.

He said large sums were paid to various individuals for no work done, mentioning specifically $6 million retained by Kari Samers and $5.7 million paid to David Adjaye to redesign a restaurant.

Mr. Ablakwa argued that, many Ghanaian architects, who are both competent and God-fearing, could have provided their services for free.

He urged the Vice President to prioritize the recovery of these funds.

“I expected the Vice President to address how they plan to retrieve our money, the $58.1 million. Ghanaians have learned about the significant sums diverted to various individuals. For instance, Kari Samers is holding onto $6 million. We need to focus on retrieving these funds,” Mr. Ablakwa added.

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National Cathedral: We could have handled things better – Minister

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Wed, 13 Mar 2024 19:12:50 +0000

The Minister of State-designate for Finance, Abena Osei-Asare has said the National Cathedral project could have been handled better.

In her vetting session on Wednesday, March 13, Mrs. Osei-Asare admitted that, there is a lot of room for improvement in the management of the project.

She stressed the crucial role of the Board of Trustees in raising funds to ensure the completion of the project.

Mrs. Osei-Asare said government has provided the seed money therefore it is now up to the Board of Trustees to general income for its completion.

“Mr Chairman, the National Cathedral is also made up of trustees and these trustees are also supposed to, they are there to raise monies to help complete the project. Government has contributed its seed fund and I believe that now is also up to the trustees to also do their part to make sure we realize this dream” she added.

Originally slated for commissioning on March 6, the National Cathedral has drawn scrutiny, especially from Minority MPs, who have voiced concerns over its expenditure and lack of transparency in funds allocation.

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National Cathedral: All institutions affected by construction have been compensated – Abu Jinapor

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Thu, 27 Jul 2023 16:31:41 +0000

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources says all institutions whose buildings were demolished to make way for the construction of the National Cathedral have been fully compensated by the state.

According to the Minister, Samuel Abu Jinapor, these institutions have been provided with alternative public lands for relocation.

Mr Jinapor said this when he was speaking in Parliament on Thursday, July 27.

A number of buildings were demolished to make way for the construction of the controversial National Cathedral.

Waterstone Realty Limited, a company that was affected has since sued the government.

But the Lands Minister told Parliament that the large piece of land on which the National Cathedral building is being constructed was acquired legitimately by the government.

He explained that some private institutions including Waterstone Realty Limited had an interest in the said land but the government has compensated them with alternative property.

“Mr Speaker, the land on which the National Cathedral is being constructed, measuring approximately 16.26 acres, forms part of a large tract of land acquired by the state in 1910 by a certificate of title dated 29 September 1910.

“Mr Speaker, apart from the public institution that occupied the area, four private institutions had interest in the land in addition to the Embassy of the Republic of Mali. All these institutions have been provided with alternative public lands. The Embassy of the Republic of Mali and Waterstone Reality Limited have been relocated to airports,” he said.

Mr Jinapor added that “The Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP) has been relocated to Roman Ridge. Numo Logistics Limited has been relocated to Cantonments and Comsys Limited has been relocated to East Ridge, thus, Mr Speaker, all persons, both public and private, who were affected by the construction have been adequately compensated by way of alternative property.”

The Lands Minister noted that the National Cathedral does not fall under the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.

“The Ministry’s only involvement in this project was the provision of land. For that purpose, the Ministry, through the Lands Commission, provided public land measuring approximately 16.26 acres and gave vacant possession of the land to the National Cathedral Secretariat. On this Mr Speaker, the Ministry has no official information on the statues of the National Cathedral,” Mr Jinapor said.

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