President John Dramani Mahama has challenged Ghana’s Christian community to take full responsibility for financing the construction of the proposed National Cathedral, insisting that the project should not be funded with taxpayers’ money.
He said the Christian community had sufficient numbers and financial capacity to mobilise the resources required to complete the project if each Christian contributed towards it.
Speaking during a citizens’ engagement in the Upper West Region, President Mahama said a contribution of GH¢1,000 from Christians across the country could generate enough funds for the construction of the facility.
“How many Christians are in this country? If we all pay 1,000 cedis each, we should be able to construct a national cathedral,” he said.
The President stressed that his objection was not to the idea of a National Cathedral but to the use of public resources to finance it.
“I am a Christian myself. I have nothing against having a national cathedral,” he said.
He urged Christian organisations to lead efforts to raise the necessary funds and determine how the project could be completed without placing an additional burden on the taxpayer.
Mahama questions choice of site
President Mahama also questioned the suitability of the current location of the cathedral, saying the area was already congested with major public institutions and facilities.
He cited Parliament, the International Conference Centre, the Greater Accra Regional Hospital and the National Theatre as some of the key facilities surrounding the proposed site.
“My principle has always been that the location has been a problem,” he said.
According to him, the concentration of major facilities in the area could create significant congestion, particularly during major national events.
“So normally during ceremonies, you have the stadium not far, and that’s the way we used to go to Black Star Square. So if you go and put this major thing there again, it will constrict that whole area,” he added.
He further criticised the demolition of public and diplomatic properties to clear the site, including 10 judges’ residences, the residence of the Malian Ambassador and the old passport office.
“We broke the Malian Ambassador’s residence. Up to now, we’ve not replaced it. And several other properties, the old passport office, all of them were demolished to make way for a national cathedral,” he said.
Forensic audit completed
President Mahama disclosed that a forensic audit into expenditure on the project had been completed and was currently with the Attorney General.
He said a copy of the audit would be provided to the Christian Council of Ghana to enable it to scrutinise how nearly US$90 million had been spent on the project.
“The forensic audit is ready; it’s with the Attorney General, and I’ll make a copy of it available to the Christian Council so that they can look at the processes of what went into the expenditure of the 90 million dollars, so that if there’s any corrective action, we can take it together,” he said.
His comments come shortly after the Christian Council announced the formation of a technical committee to explore options for reviving the stalled National Cathedral project.
The committee, comprising representatives from various Christian groupings, has been given one month to develop a practical financing model and make recommendations on the project’s proposed location and other outstanding matters.
President Mahama, however, maintained that the National Cathedral should not be treated in the same way as government projects or policies inherited from previous administrations.
He argued that the cathedral was primarily a personal pledge made by former President Nana Akufo-Addo and not a government policy that his administration was obliged to continue.
