Pulling down judges' bungalows for cathedral sign of development, progress – Amewu

The immediate-past Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, John Peter Amewu, has defended government’s decision to pull down bungalows of some judges located around the 37 Military Hospital, for the construction of a National Cathedral.

“Demolishing should rather be seen as an index of development,” Mr Amewu said on Monday, 27 August 2018, adding: “Most of them [bungalows] are outdated, they are dilapidated especially when you come to the area that we are going to put the new building”.

He continued: “…What we are going to construct for them [judges], by demolishing these ones, is far better than what is here. Any country that has an agenda of development, there is always an element of demolition. We need to pull down some structures and move in accordance with the era of development”.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on Tuesday, 6 March 2018 unveiled the design – architecture of the national Cathedral at a brief ceremony at the Accra International Conference Centre.

It would house impressive chapels and baptistery, a 5,000-capacity auditorium, grand central hall, music school, choir rehearsal and multi-use spaces, an art gallery and a shop.

The President said the edifice was going to be an iconic centre for thanksgiving and to worship God for His mercies. He called for all to find space to support the construction of the project.

Making that a reality, however, requires that some state structures be pulled down – including bungalows built about five years ago.

This has attracted mixed reactions from Ghanaians.



For instance Prof Kwaku Asare, a United States-based Ghanaian professor, wrote on Facebook that: "Five Years Ago: The Judicial service has built 10 six-bedroom bungalows to house Court of Appeal Judges. Now: The 10 six-bedroom bungalows are being demolished to make way for a national cathedral. But not to worry: The Government has rented alternative expensive bungalows for the Judges to relocate temporarily while it begins construction of over twenty new bungalows on a different land in replacement for what it is going to be destroyed to make way for the cathedral.

“Da Yie!" Can we not get a beautiful land around Aburi and build this National Cathedral there?”

However, Mr Amewu maintained that for “the 21 new buildings that we are going to put up for the judges, the pros far outweigh the cons”.



He further explained that: “Where they [judges] were living is dilapidated… Nobody can even stay in them [bungalows]. They were built, I think, pre-independence and we are pulling down these buildings to have new ones”.

For him, “The benefit, as a result of coming out with this new construction, is in the right direction”.

He further revealed that he has interacted with the estate department of the Judicial Service and “they were all excited about this new project”.