President John Dramani Mahama has said the Christian community should take responsibility for funding the construction of the National Cathedral rather than relying on taxpayers’ money.
Speaking during his Resetting Ghana Tour of the Upper West Region on Saturday, September 12, President Mahama said he had no objection to Ghana having a National Cathedral but maintained that public funds should not be used to complete the project.
According to him, the project was a personal pledge made by former President Nana Akufo-Addo and was not a national policy inherited by his administration.
“Projects and policies we inherited, we have continued the only one is the National Cathedral. But that was not a national policy. It was a personal pledge by the former president. It was a personal pledge by the former president to God,” he said.
President Mahama said the country’s Christian community had the numbers and capacity to mobilise the resources needed to complete the project.
“How many Christians are in this country? If we all pay a thousand cedis each, we should be able to construct a National Cathedral,” he stated.
He also disclosed that a forensic audit covering nearly $90 million spent on the project had been completed and was currently with the Attorney-General.
“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,” he said.
The President’s position comes as Christian leaders explore a new funding model for the stalled project.
The Christian Council of Ghana has established a technical committee with representatives from various Christian groupings to examine funding, location and other outstanding issues. The committee has one month to make its recommendations.
The Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mahama Ayariga, has also expressed willingness to help mobilise resources if the Christian community reaches consensus on the project and President Mahama backs its continuation.
Mr. Ayariga previously said he would engage Christian leaders and the President on the project and help mobilise funds if there was renewed support for its construction.
