The founder and presiding Bishop of the Lighthouse Group of Churches, has gone to town revealing dark and dirty secrets about what many Ghanaians had been made to believe was the House of God, where everything was expected to be sanctimonious.
But, Bishop Dag Heward-Mills, described the National Cathedral project now in its seventh year, “a massive pit in the centre of the city” and insisted that questions being asked by Ghanaians about the US$400 million project are legitimate.
He went further to suggest that there is a secret organization in-charge of the construction of the cathedral different from those he is familiar with.
He said this in a resignation letter he wrote to the publicly announced Chairman of the Board and Trustees, Apostle Prof. Opoku Onyinah, a former Chairman of the Church of Pentecost Chairperson, the Executive Director of the Cathedral, Dr Paul Opoku-Mensah, copied all members of the Board of Trustees, the President, Nana Akufo-Addo in June 2022, which has found its way into the public.
Amongst the men of God on the project are; Archbishop Charles Palmer-Buckle, Metropolitan Catholic Archbishop, Cape Coast, Most Rev. Bishop Justice Ofei Akrofi, Former Anglican Archbishop Emeritus, , Rt. Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Martey, Former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, Most Rev T. K. Awotwi Pratt, Former Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church and Rev Prof Cephas Omenyo, Former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church.
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The others are Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, Presiding Archbishop and General Overseer of Action Chapel International, Rev Dr Joyce Aryee, Executive Director, Salt and Light Ministries, Rev Eastwood Anaba, Founder and President of Eastwood Anaba Ministries, Rev Victor Kusi-Boateng, Founder of Power Chapel Worldwide, Member/Secretary, Rev Dr Frimpong Manso, General Superintendent, Assemblies of God.
In the letter, Bishop Heward-Mills, raised concerns about the structure of the leadership of the Cathedral, the US$400 million price tag on the project, design, review of the mode of fund-raising, re-strategising among others.
He holds the view that the US$400 million was outrageous, indicating it could have been constructed at a lesser amount.
The top pastor expressed disappointment in the leadership of the National Cathedral for ignoring concerns he raised in several letters he wrote to them revealing that he was also surprised to find out that he had not been duly registered as a Director of the Company of the National Cathedral of Ghana, a company limited by guarantee though the President had “verbally appointed him as such.”
He stated in the letter that some other people whom he had never met are the real Trustees of the Board taking decisions including the continuous payment of the contractors US$40,000 a month as the leadership waits to procure a huge loan to continue with the construction.
With regard to the fund-raisers, he lamented that the methods used over the years had not yielded much hence the need to review their strategy.
“I do believe that the fund-raising methods we have attempted have not yielded much. Indeed, some of the programmes we have held have cost more than the monies we have raised from them. I suggest another form of fund-raising where we would be guaranteed more donations from denominations, churches, individuals, businessmen and corporate bodies. I would be happy to discuss these if the committee is interested in that.”
He also called for a downward review of the US$400 million estimated budget for the project.
“I am a firm believer in the President’s vision. I believe that the public can see and is questioning the fact that we have spent almost six years since the sod-cutting of this project as well as over $30m (thirty million dollars) of public funds, to excavate a massive pit in the centre of the city. I do believe that many of the questions that are being asked and hurled at the National Cathedral Project are reasonable and legitimate questions by objective citizens who just want answers to their questions.”
He suggested that the right response to some of the questions being asked would be “an adjustment in strategy so that we can achieve our goal of building a National Cathedral even in these difficult times.”
“Continuing to pay contractors $40,000 (forty thousand dollars) a month as we wait to procure a huge loan in this hostile atmosphere sounds dicey to me. I do believe that almost six years down the line, we need to look at a different approach to achieve our goal of building God’s house in Ghana.”
The respected Bishop resigned from the National Cathedral Board of Trustees in August 2022.
The reasons for his decision at the time were unknown but it has now emerged that he has some grave concerns about the project including disappointment at the leadership of the National Cathedral for ignoring issues he raised in several letters he wrote to them with the recent one being in June 2022 through the Ghana Charismatic Bishops’ Conference.
“I feel that the treatment of the issues I have raised in my several letters has been unfortunate. My letters have been ignored in the past; not attended to for years, and at best addressed flippantly.”
“You may recall I have spoken passionately and written extensively about the costs, the design, the location, the fundraising, the mobilization of the churches, and the role of the trustees. These, if heeded, would have made our project more achievable. Generally speaking, my inputs, my opinions, and my letters have been trivialized and set aside.”
On the registered directors, he charged “I do not believe this is an oversight but a deliberate exclusion from the Board. Six years is a long time to correct this failure to register me if it was indeed an administrative lapse.”
“l have therefore accepted for some time now that I am not a trustee of the National Cathedral, but I have still sought to help with the Cathedral because I believe in the President’s vision and I do not have to be a legally registered trustee to do so. I refer to myself in this letter as a trustee because even though l am not privy to most of the weighty decisions of the Board I am referred to as such.”
He also thought the role of the state and the church in the project was unclear.
“This lack of clarity is robbing our vision of the validity it needs. Over and over, I have asked that we address this appropriately and urgently because there are many dire implications to the trustees and the individuals involved in this project.”
The founder and leader of Lighthouse Chapel International, also observed that the trustees of the project were not the ones directing and administering the affairs of the project.
He complained that most of the weighty decisions concerning the project are taken by other people instead of the trustees.
“I have been a reachable and available trustee and attended every single meeting of trustees since the pandemic began, in person and by zoom, and the records will show that. If I say that I, as a trustee, do not know many of the financial and technical issues concerning the Cathedral, it means the discussions about the National Cathedral were held by some people outside the trustees’ meeting or perhaps in a forum that I was not present or invited to.”
“On the one hand, the National Cathedral is said to be a Government of Ghana project, with the government taking financial decisions. Yet, on another hand, at meetings, it is implied that the trustees have taken or participated in taking some decisions.”
While resigning, Bishop Dag said: I would like to state clearly that if in the future, there is more clarity to my role and function in the building of the Cathedral, I remain open, available and willing to serve at the pleasure of the President and the nation. Regardless of your response to my resignation and inputs, I remain a supporter of the National Cathedral project and will endeavour to be present to rejoice with the nation when this project is completed.”
He however clarified that his resignation does not mean he is against the building of the cathedral as he is an avid believer in the project.
“…I do not wish the media or general public to construe my withdrawal as a sign of a lack of support or belief in the building of the National Cathedral.”
The National Cathedral Secretariat has come under fire after revelations that millions were paid to some individuals for no work done.
For instance, the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has been on a crusade to expose what he calls rot at the National Cathedral Secretariat,
Mr. Ablakwa had claimed that some GH₵2.6 million was paid to a company owned by a board member of the cathedral, Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng.
JNS Talent Centre Ltd which allegedly runs a crèche in Dawhenya was paid some GH¢2.6 million to help build the cathedral, the lawmaker revealed in a tweet last Wednesday.
The lawmaker on Monday, January 16, further alleged that JNS Talent is owned by one Kwabena Adu Gyamfi.
According to him, documents in his possession reveal that Mr Kwabena Adu Gyamfi is the same as Rev. Victor Kusi-Boateng who still serves on the National Cathedral Board as an Executive Council Member/Director.
But the Secretariat in a statement explained that the GH₵2.6 million was a refund to JNS talent and not an amount illegally paid to the company.
