Flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has slammed the Akufo-Addo-led government for allocating over $450 million to the National Cathedral project amid significant challenges in the education sector.
Addressing religious leaders in Wa as part of the “Building Ghana Tour” in the Upper West Region, Mahama stated that spending such a substantial amount of taxpayers’ money on a cathedral would not gain God’s approval, particularly when many of taxpayers lack quality healthcare amongst many other things.
“The President said that he made a pledge to God that if he won the election he would build a Cathedral for him. So it is his personal pledge and if he wants to build it, he must gather people who support that conviction to build that. And we were told that public funds were not going to be used for the Cathedral”, he said.
“But eventually, we found that the Minister of Finance was releasing public taxes. We can’t use public funds including the funds of people of other denominations to build a Cathedral for Christians alone”, he added.
The former President emphasized the urgency of directing these funds toward education, particularly when basic schools lack essential resources.
He questioned the justification for allocating such a significant budget to the cathedral project, especially considering the government’s expenses on consultancy services.
“So far, 58 million dollars of public funds have been spent just to dig a deep hole and you have to ask yourself is it justified in this day and age when children don’t have desks in schools when children do not have textbooks?.”
“For five years, we have not provided our basic schools with textbooks even though we have come out with a new curriculum because we say there is no money, and you say we should use 450 million dollars to build a Cathedral, even God will be angry with us.”
Read Also >>> JOHN MAHAMA MEETS DELEGATION FROM GERMAN SPD PARTY
Meanwhile, the National Identification Authority (NIA) has appealed to the Public Service Workers Union of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to cancel its planned strike and retract its notice of action, scheduled to begin on March 25, 2024.
The Union, in a statement released on March 4, announced its intention to embark on an indefinite strike starting Monday, March 25. The strike is contingent on whether their proposed allowances submitted to the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission are reflected in their March 2024 payslip, and whether their Scheme of Service (SOS) is approved and implemented by March 25, 2024.
The Union also demands that the Draft Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) be regulated by the same date.
“Failure to meet these requests on or before the stated date would be met with an industrial strike action. All union members nationwide: at the Head Office, Regional Offices, Premium Offices, and District Offices will lay down our tools until our concerns are addressed fully,” the Union declared.
However, the NIA, in a statement released on March 8, argued that the planned strike lacks factual, evidentiary, or legal basis.
“Your intended action will only cause undue hardship to the public, particularly prospective consumers of NIA’s registration service across the country; it will cause needless maximum harm to the Republic of Ghana and inflict avoidable reputable damage on NIA and the Government of Ghana, in addition to spelling major revenue losses for the country,” the NIA warned.
The NIA management expressed its hope for the Union to exercise good faith, sound judgement, and moderation in its approach to the matter during these volatile times.
“Management also looks forward to your calling off your planned industrial action as we work together harmoniously, speedily and sincerely to improve the conditions of service of NIA within the bounds of law and public policy,” the NIA concluded.
