Charles Owusu Juanah
The lawyer for the National Cathedral, Charles Owusu Juanah, has called on the President to address what he describes as a deliberate attempt by Presidential Spokesperson Felix Ofosu Kwakye to erode public confidence in the project through selective and misleading commentary.
He criticised Mr. Ofosu Kwakye for highlighting portions of a management letter from Deloitte and Touche’s audit while ignoring the final audited report, which, according to him, found no evidence of misappropriation, and confirmed that state funds were used under approved contracts and aligned with delivered work.
Addressing a press conference at the Ghana International Press Centre on Thursday, July 24, 2025, he noted that “portraying the management letter as a declaration of corruption is, at best, misleading and at worst, a deliberate attempt to deceive the public.”
“Mr. President, let those of them who are bastardizing, who are criticizing, who are hating the cathedral, without any truth, to push back. …I believe that the Christians in this country, if they decide that they are going to support, they don’t need government funds. How much money are they paying in tithe and offerings? They can pay. But we don’t want the criminality, the stench that is being put against the cathedral. It is not fair. It is not true,” he said.
Mr Charles Juanah acknowledged that, as indicated by the Deloitte audit report, some receipts and documentation were missing, but said the Cathedral Secretariat provided payment vouchers, bank statements, and board approvals during the reconciliation process.
“Minor discrepancies remain under follow-up, but nowhere does the audit accuse any individual or body of embezzlement or theft,” he added.
ADB MoMo contributions
He referred to claims in respect of the Agricultural Development Bank’s (ADB) Mobile Money (MoMo) platform, noting that the Board of Trustees did not receive any contribution.
He clarified that an initial GHC34million, followed by GHC13million, and GHC 3million were received through the MoMo platform, but these funds were not transferred to the Board of Trustees.
“ADB has yet to publicly reconcile or disclose the status of these contributions. Mr Kwakye, rather than seeking answers from ADB, misleads the public by suggesting the Board misused funds it never received. This is not just false but grossly irresponsible,” he said.
Mr Charles Juanah further disclosed that a lot of letters had been written to the bank, but management of the ADB was yet to respond.
“So now that we are getting to a point where it seems that they are being recalcitrant in giving us the information, then now I can go to court and sue. But we have to go through a certain process first,” he added.
Among other claims, he pointed to Mr Kwakye’s referral of the construction site as “just a hole”, noting that “$58million has already been disbursed for foundational and structural work, with $39million committed under binding contracts.”
Dissolving of the Board
He also condemned the recent decision to dissolve the Board of Trustees, stressing that it was a legally constituted body formed under Section 6 of the Companies Act, 2019, and not a political appointment.
“The National Cathedral is incorporated as a Company Limited by Guarantee—a structure used for churches and non-profits. It is not a state-owned enterprise, nor is it governed by Executive decisions or subject to the Public Financial Management Act,” he emphasised.
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