The Board of the National Cathedral has stated that it remains committed to continuing with the project.
According to the Board the project is very important for the development of the country.
“As a Board, we took on the responsibility to lead the development of the National Cathedral with the firm conviction that this was a critical national infrastructure. Despite the challenges the project has faced, we remain committed to the vision of a National Cathedral for the Nation,” a press release signed by Dr Paul Opoku-Mensah read in part.
The press release was in reaction to a press conference by the Minister in Charge of Government Communication, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, on July 18.
During the press conference under reference, Mr Ofosu stated among others, that President John Mahama has directed that the Secretariat be dissolved while legal steps are taken to dissolve the Board.
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In reaction, the National Cathedral Board wrote in the press release dated July 18, “The attention of the Board of the National Cathedral of Ghana has just been drawn to a Press Conference on the Project by the Minister for Government Communications. The Board is reviewing the full content of the Press conference and will respond accordingly.”
“We note with concern that the Press Conference held is not a full disclosure because it focused mainly on the Management letter and not the actual Audit reports for 2020-2023. This is rather strange. The Press conference was skewed towards queries in the Management letter, totally disregarding the detailed responses of the Board. The queries and the responses form the content of the Management letter which was in the possession of the Minister,” they clarified.
The Board expressed disappointment that, “… despite ongoing investigations by state agencies such as the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), the President has instructed the Attorney General to take steps to dissolve the Board without any formal findings of wrongdoing.
The Board described the directive as inappropriate.
“This is particularly troubling given that, acting on the President’s directive, the Board was actively engaged in discussions with the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs on the future of the project,” they noted.
