I did not withdraw funds from the Contingency Fund for National Cathedral – Ken Ofori-Atta

The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, denied claims by the Minority that there has been an unconstitutional withdrawal from the contingency funds for the construction of the National Cathedral.

According to him, he did not breach the constitution in making payments to support the construction of the National Cathedral from a contingency vault and not the contingency funds.

"…the next is the grounds of the proponent claiming that there have been some unconstitutional withdrawals from the consolidated funds in blatant contravention of Article 178 of the 1992 constitution supposedly for the construction of the president’s National Cathedral, Mr Co chairs that took me for a loop since I didn’t know what the president’s cathedral was.

"…I say with both humility and confidence that I have not breached the constitution in making payments to support the construction of the National Cathedral."

He explained that he has taken no money from the contingency fund to make payment for the national cathedral but rather from the contingence vault which was lawfully done.

The finance minister said the proponents have confused the contingency funds with the contingency vault.

“There is a difference between the contingency vote and contingency fund the proponents refer to. Contingent vote under Article 177 constitutes monies voted by Parliament and advance on this must be authorized by the parliamentary finance committee," he told the committee.