The Minister of State-designate for Finance, Abena Osei-Asare, says the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral could have played a crucial role in raising funds to support the completion of the project.
According to her, while the government had contributed its share to facilitate the project’s completion, it is now essential for the Board of Trustees to fulfill their mandate by actively advancing the project.
Mrs Abena Osei-Asare told the Parliamentary Vetting Committee that the National Cathedral is also made up of trustees, and these trustees are supposed to raise funds to help complete the project.
She said the government has contributed its seed fund, and was now up to the trustees to also play their part to ensure the realization of this dream.
Speaking before the Vetting Committee on Wednesday, March 13, Mrs Abena Osei-Asare emphasised that the management of the controversial National Cathedral could have been handled more effectively.
She explained that improvements could have been made in overseeing the construction of the project, which has faced delays over the years.
Meanwhile, on March 6, some members of the opposition National Democratic Congress in Parliament visited the National Cathedral premises to commission the unfinished project.
They asserted that the commissioning aimed to highlight the government’s failure to complete the project.
The MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakaw and his colleagues called on the government to account for the project expenses, noting the failure to complete the cathedral as promised by the then Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta in 2021.
Referring to the project as the most expensive pit in the world, Mr Ablakwa demanded full accountability for the “$58,141,509.52” said to have been invested. “We also want to know why the contractors abandoned this project for lack of payment two years ago.”
He added, “We are demanding a comprehensive report on how much it has cost the state to replace and compensate some owners of demolished properties and how much is still outstanding, considering that aggrieved demolished property owners such as Waterstone Realty have resorted to the court.”
