By Judy Ahinakwa
The National Cathedral Secretariat has refuted claims that the construction of the project is surrounded by corruption and criminality.
According to the Executive Director of the National Cathedral Secretariat, Dr. Paul Opoku-Mensah, there is no evidence of criminality or corruption in the cathedral project; rather, the process has faced heavy criticism from the public, with some individuals asserting that the government has not been transparent in disclosing the funds allocated for the facility’s construction.
Speaking to the media, Dr. Opoku-Mensah emphasised that all expenditures related to the cathedral are implemented with integrity.
“The idea that a project of this nature would not want to be accountable, I cannot understand it, I cannot fathom it. This audit notwithstanding, I want to state categorically that there’s no criminality. We have implemented the project with integrity, including accounting for all the funds from the state to the National Cathedral Project.”
He lamented that the rumours circulating about criminality over the project are not true, despite the delay in construction.
“We have repeated this, and we will repeat it again; there’s no criminality in the National Cathedral Project. We have accounted for every penny that we have been given by the state and donors. This accounting is submitted to Parliament; sometimes it’s being misused, but we have submitted everything to Parliament.”
He highlighted that measures are being put in place to secure historical artefacts for the cathedral’s museum and gardens.
“There have been issues that the project has been suspended, but it hasn’t. Construction has stalled, but the National Cathedral is almost an institution; it’s going to be one of the largest institutions, so the work continues on a daily basis. In addition to funding, we are already engaging with those who can provide us with artefacts. Because if you want to turn it into a world-class site, you need historical artefacts,” the Executive Director of the National Cathedral Secretariat assured.
Founder and General Overseer of United Denominations of Action Chapel Churches Worldwide, Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, and President of Eastwood Anaba Ministries, Rev. Eastwood Anaba, have tendered their resignations from the Board of Trustees overseeing the construction of the National Cathedral.
In a joint statement released by Archbishop Duncan-Williams and Rev. Anaba, they clarified that their decision to step down stems from the government’s failure to appoint an independent accounting firm to conduct a comprehensive audit of all public funds contributed to the National Cathedral.