Payments for National Cathedral were lawfully made – Ofori-Atta

The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has denied allegations that he did not get authorisation for National Cathedral expenditures.

The Finance Minister said the project was 100 per cent owned by the state, contrary to impressions that it was the project of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo.

He told the Adhoc Committee of Parliament hearing the censure motion to remove him that expenditures in respect of the National Cathedral were made from the Contingency Vote under the “Other Government Obligations” vote.

He said the spending was done from that in line with the practice before his tenure.

“I have copies of several payments from the Contingency Vote dating back to 2015 to share,” he said.

He said, as Finance Minister, he was fully aware of the approval procedures for use of the Contingency Fund and had not breached its requirement.

“The National Cathedral is 100% owned by the State and is not the President’s Cathedral as described by the Proponents.

“Indeed, the Attorney General issued an opinion on January 6, 2022, that the National Cathedral is a state-owned company limited by guarantee, under the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board,” Mr Ofori-Atta said.

He said the policy direction and updates on the National Cathedral have been publicly presented over the years through the National Budget Statement and Economic Policy presented to Parliament.

“In conclusion, Co-Chairs, all the payments made for the National Cathedral were lawfully done and from the Contingency Vote under the “Other Government Obligations” vote and not from the Contingency Fund as alleged by the Proponents,” he said.