Jantuah quizzes Attorney General on National Cathedral: ‘Is $58m put in a big hole not causing financial loss to the state?’

Politician Kwame Jantuah, a significant member of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) and a legal practitioner, has questioned the Attorney General about issues concerning the Construction of the National Cathedral.

Lawyer Jantuah questioned the lack of interest on the part of both the Attorney-General and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) to prosecute handlers of the national cathedral project, which has since sunk about US$58 million.

During Ghana’s 60th independence Anniversary celebration, the President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced his intentions of building the national cathedral project.

The construction of the National Cathedral was a personal promise akufo-Addo made to God during his 2016 Presidential campaign -if elected as president.

It’s been 7 years now, and so far it’s the taxpayers money, $58 million, which has been used on the National Cathedral project. As of April 2024, the has still been no significant improvement on the project.

It is estimated that the government under NPP will need $450 million to complete the National Cathedral project, but as we speak, it is not clear if such amount is available to champion this project.

Furthermore, various churches and denominations has contributed more than ¢2.21 million towards the Construction of the National Cathedral as of 2022.

Even though the contributions by these religious bodies are huge and significant, it can’t on its own construct the National Cathedral Edifice.

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Mr Jantuah could not hide his disappointment about the amount spent on the project yet no significant work has been done on site.

He was reacting to the developments from the court as regards the trial of Minority Leader Dr Cassiel Ato Forson and businessman Richard Jakpa for causing financial loss to the state in the purchase of “unfit” ambulances for the country.

Ato Cassiel Forson and Richard Jakpa are facing trial for causing a €2.37 million financial loss to the state over the ambulance deal.

He’s surprised why the Attorney General, Godfred Dame, has deliberately refused to take on persons involved in the payments made on the national cathedral project, but has decided to screw Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa.

Mr Jantuah made the remarks when he appeared on TV3’s morning show, New Day on Friday.

He said, “… National cathedral, how much money has been sunk into it? We are saying that the ambulances didn’t meet the standards. Have we seen a block when the national cathedral is concerned?”

“How much money have been sunk in there and the NPP people will tell you it went to parliament… have you seen a block? Hasn’t the taxpayers’ money been put in a big hole; how much money is that? 58 million US dollars. Is that not causing financial loss to the state? Should that not attract the Special Prosecutor and the Attorney-General to take it up? If causing financial loss to the state is what we are doing with this case.

“Is there no financial loss in that case?” he quizzed.

A Trial judge has advised the attorney General to stay away from ambulance case, but in recent news, the attorney General said it was just an advice so he can decide to stay away or not. And as a matter of fact, he is not staying away from the ambulance case.

Meanwhile, Mr Jantuah underscored that the advice from the trial judge, Justice Efia Serwah Asare-Botwey to the Attorney-General to recuse himself from the ongoing case in the interest of justice and the public suggests wrongdoing on the part of Mr Dame.

He argued that “for me, he [Godfred Dame] has already been found guilty by the judge’s comments.”

Additionally, Mr Jantuah expressed concerns about the fact that the Attorney-General and the justices of the Supreme Court are “in the face of the public”, emphasising the difficulty for the public to become familiar with the justices of the apex court in other jurisdictions such as the US or the UK.

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