The reasons for Bishop Dag Heward-Mills’ resignation from the National Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral project, have emerged.
The Founder and leader of the Lighthouse Chapel International resigned in August 2022, but the reasons were unknown.
However, his letter to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees copied to 14 others including the President is out.
He says most of his concerns about the project and the activities of the Trustees were ignored.
“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.”
The Bishop says 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.”
According to his letter, some other people whom he had never met are the real Trustees of the Board.
“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.”
No clarity
Just like many Ghanaians, Bishop Dag also felt the state and the church’s role in the project is 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.”
He also observed the trustees of the project were not the ones directing and administering the affairs of the project.
“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.”
I’m not against National Cathedral
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.”
“…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.”
This comes when the Cathedral Secretariat is under pressure over alleged wrongdoing by the Secretary of the Board of Trustees.
MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has dragged Rev. Kusi-Boateng to the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice. He is accusing him of engaging in conflict of interest in the transfer of some funds.
He claims the Secretariat paid GHS2.6 Million into the account of JNS Talent Centre Limited allegedly owned by Rev. Kusi-Boateng.
In response, the Secretariat said the GH₵2.6 million was a loan refund to JNS Talent and not an illegal payment.
Source – Tru News Report
