Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng
SECRETARY TO the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral, Reverend Victor Kusi Boateng, has said the board members are determined in constructing the National Cathedral in spite of the odds.
He has consequently refuted reports that some members of the board have resigned.
“No National Cathedral [board] member has resigned or is ready to resign. We are even stronger now and resolute that this cathedral will be built at all cost,” he stated at a press conference in Kumasi yesterday.
According to Rev. Boateng, the Board of Trustees has been transparent in its dealings and oversight, explaining that the General Overseer of International Central Gospel Church, Pastor Mensa Otabil, declined to join the board when he was approached.
He said Pastor Otabil was appointed as part of the 13-member Board of Trustees, but he indicated to the board that he would not be able to give the needed attention to the project.
He, therefore, would not want to be registered as a director of the company, the Board Secretary explained further.
“We were not ashamed. We came publicly to say it. We should have taken his name from our website, but we were so much into so many things,” Rev. Boateng indicated.
“There is not a single cathedral member who has resigned. Even Dr. Mensa Otabil, up till today, is always on the phone with us, encouraging us, bringing suggestions and telling us what should be done,” he posited.
Politicking
The founder of the Power Chapel Worldwide urged Ghanaians to refrain from politicising the construction of the non-denominational edifice, asserting that the National Cathedral project has the potential to immensely benefit the country spiritually and physically in future.
He said the constant politicisation of the project had adversely affected contributions from individuals and organisations.
Prophet Boateng appealed to the media to use their platforms to rally support for the project.
At the conference, leaders of Christian Churches reaffirmed their support for the National Cathedral project.
Chairman of the Kumasi Council of Christian Churches, Archbishop Yinkah Sarfo Kantanka, said his outfit fully supports the project, and appealed to all and sundry to come on board.
For him, this would ensure the successful completion of the project as programmed, arguing that the National Cathedral would help transform the country.
In his view, the project has the tendency of evoking the blessings of God, while pledging their commitment to ensure transparency and accountability of the funds received for the project.
The Project
The government said the National Cathedral will be a historic project that provides a sacred space and infrastructure for the formal religious activities of the nation, like state funerals and presidential inaugural services.
The National Cathedral Secretariat has also stated that “it is this national character that distinguishes it from the other cathedrals in the country.”
“We are taking the bold vision of the President for a Sacred National infrastructure, linking it to the path-breaking design of iconic Architect Sir David Adjaye OBE, and organically anchoring these in world-class programmes – including Africa’s first Museum of the Bible whose development is supervised by Cary Summers, the founding President of the Museum of the Bible in Washington DC,” it said.
The secretariat said they had engaged “the very best of Ghana with the very best in the world.”
“The result of the integration of the vision, design, and programming is an iconic infrastructure that provides a sacred space for the nation, attracts pilgrims and tourists, and includes a built-in economic engine for financial sustainability,” it argues.
Recently, some Ghanaians expressed shock when the Ministry of Finance authorised the release of GH¢25 million to construct the biggest cathedral for the nation.
The amount was to serve as additional seed money to the National Cathedral Secretariat for the construction of the cathedral for part payment of the outstanding claim from RIBADE Limited.
BY Ernest Kofi Adu & I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr