All institutions demolished for National Cathedral construction compensated - Lands Minister

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources has confirmed that all institutions whose buildings were demolished to make way for the construction of the National Cathedral of Ghana have been fully compensated by the government.

Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Lands Minister, revealed that these institutions were provided with alternative public lands for their relocation. He made this statement during a session in Parliament on Thursday, July 27.

“Mr Speaker, the land on which the National Cathedral is being constructed, measuring approximately 16.26 acres, forms part of a large tract of land acquired by the state in 1910 by a certificate of title dated 29 September 1910.

“Mr Speaker, apart from the public institution that occupied the area, four private institutions had interest in the land in addition to the Embassy of the Republic of Mali. All these institutions have been provided with alternative public lands. The Embassy of the Republic of Mali and Waterstone Realty Limited have been relocated to Airport,” he said.

“The Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP) has been relocated to Roman Ridge. Numo Logistics Limited has been relocated to Cantonment and Comsys Limited has been relocated to East Ridge, thus, Mr. Speaker, all persons, both public and private, who were affected by the construction have been adequately compensated by way of alternative properties,” he added.

The construction of the controversial National Cathedral required the demolition of several buildings, leading to legal action from Waterstone Realty Limited, a company affected by the project.

However, Minister Jinapor asserted that the land on which the National Cathedral is being built was acquired legitimately by the government. While some private institutions, including Waterstone Realty Limited, had interests in the land, they have been compensated with alternative properties.

In his address to Parliament, Minister Jinapor clarified that the National Cathedral does not fall under the purview of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources. The Ministry's involvement was solely in providing the land, approximately measuring 16.26 acres, to the National Cathedral Secretariat. As a result, they do not have further information on the status of the National Cathedral project beyond the land provision.

“The Ministry’s only involvement in this project was the provision of land. For that purpose, the Ministry, through the Lands Commission, provided public land measuring approximately 16.26 acres and gave vacant possession of the land to the National Cathedral Secretariat. On this Mr. Speaker, the Ministry has no official information on the statues of the National Cathedral,” Mr Jinapor said.

With the assurance of full compensation for all affected parties, the construction of the National Cathedral continues amid ongoing debates and controversies surrounding the project.

GA/SARA

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