The Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamale Central, Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, has disclosed that the Trades and Industry Committee of Parliament has suspended the approval of GH₵80 million allocated for the construction of the National Cathedral.
According to him, the committee is interested in unveiling how the Ministry of Tourism used the previous GH₵339 million intended for the cathedral’s construction.
The MP, who is a member of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), claimed that the current economic hardship of Ghanaians must be the main focus of the government and not the building of a National Cathedral to generate income for the state.
“What the committee decided was that we cannot just approve this GH₵80 million. We must know how the other GH₵339 million was spent. What did it constitute?
“The GH₵80 million you want us to approve, how did it find space in the budget line of the Ministry of Tourism when the Minister and the directors could not speak to the questions we were asking? What constitutes the GH₵80 million? They should give us a breakdown,” he disclosed in an interview monitored by The Ghana Report on JoyNews on Tuesday, December 13.
According to the MP, the committee has invited the finance minister and other key stakeholders to explain how GH₵339 million was spent on the National Cathedral.
He added that Parliament was yet to approve the appropriation bill for the 2023 Budget presented by the Finance Minister, which included the GH₵80 million allocation to the National Cathedral.
Earlier, the Okyehene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin II, pleaded support for building the National Cathedral to prevent shame to President Akufo-Addo.
In response, the MP said building the cathedral at the expense of Ghanaians’ hardship would make God angry.
“We have a very respected traditional leader who says that we should not bring shame. We should not bring shame at the expense of our survival. So, to avoid shame, people must rob in the name of God. Do you think God will be happy? I think that God is angry with this government.”