Five renowned men of God have departed the National Cathedral Trustees Board.Founder of the International Central Gospel Church, Dr Mensa Otabil, is the first among the four to have denied being a part of the Board.News on this information surfaced in June 2022 after MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa claimed that Dr Otabil resigned due to illegalities.The Executive Director of the National Cathedral project, Dr.

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Paul Opoku-Mensah, refuted this report, clarifying that prior to the registration of the members of the Board of Trustees in 2019, Dr. Otabil opted out since, “he could not give the needed attention to the project.”<img alt="" class="wp-image-576767" style="aspect-ratio:0.9191374663072777;width:1034px;height:auto"/>Founder of the International Central Gospel Church, Dr Mensa Otabil“So, Dr.

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Mensa Otabil did not resign from the Board as being alleged, but excused himself at the point of registration of the Directors in July, 2019. For the avoidance of all doubt, Dr. Otabil has not been a member of the Board of Trustees since July, 2019,” he further explained in a statement.

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Two months later, after this brouhaha, the founder of LightHouse Chapel International, Bishop Dag Heward-Mills, became the first member of the Trustees Board to officially resign.Bishop Dag Heward-Mills, in August 2022, did not assign any specific reason for his departure; leaving the public to rely on their own conjectures. But in January 2023, he provided his justification in a letter available to Accra-based Citi TV.

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In the 'leaked' letter, he noted that his unresolved concerns about the cost of the National Cathedral and other pertinent issues triggered his exit.“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", Dag Heward-Mills said.

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“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", portions of the letter further disclosed.

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He went on to clarify that despite his six-year tenure on the Board, his official designation as a Director of the National Cathedral had not been formally acknowledged.

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<img alt="" class="wp-image-576768"/>Founder of LightHouse Chapel International, Bishop Dag Heward-MillsBishop Heward-Mills expressed the view that even if the omission of his name was initially an administrative oversight, it could have been rectified during his lengthy tenure on the Board.In his opinion, this was not a mere oversight, and as a result, he opted to resign.

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“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.

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“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", Dag Heward-Mills explained.

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He continued, "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”.The resignation letter added: “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.

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"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".In that same month, reports emerged that Rev Prof Cephas Omenyo, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, had resigned from the Board due to bad health.

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Spokesperson for the Presbyterian Church, Rev. George Larbi who spoke to the media explained that the former Moderator resigned long ago due to ill health.<img alt="" class="wp-image-576809" style="aspect-ratio:1;width:1034px;height:auto"/>Past moderator of the Presbyterian Church, Rev. Professor Cephas Omenyo“When he was elected, per his position as a moderator of the church, he was appointed a trustee of the National Cathedral.

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So, when he fell sick and could not function again and later on a new moderator was elected. In fact, he refused to be a member of the trustee.“So, I remember I drew the attention of the public relations officer of the National Cathedral, that in this case they should take away Rev. Prof. Cephas Omenyo’s photo. Because, one of our former moderators, in the person of Very Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Martey already sits on the trustee.

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So, the current moderator is not even a member of the trustee because we already have Very. Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Martey there,” Mr. Larbi added.Now, the talk of town is the resignation of two other prominent members of the Board.Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, the Founder and General Overseer of the United Denominations of Action Chapel Churches Worldwide, and Rev.

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Eastwood Anaba, Founder of Eastwood Anaba Ministries, in a letter on October 12, 2023, announced their resignation.<img alt="" class="wp-image-576769" style="aspect-ratio:1;width:1034px;height:auto"/>Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, the Founder and General Overseer of the United Denominations of Action Chapel Churches WorldwideThis stemmed from unresolved challenges they raised to the Secretariat.

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They announced the Secretariat's failure to engage an independent accounting firm to conduct a thorough audit of all public funds contributed to the National Cathedral project.In January 2023, as Trustees of the Board of Trustees, they submitted a draft Resolution to the said Board resolving that current activities, advancing the construction of Ghana's National Cathedral, be deferred until the findings of an audit.

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This deferment included a cessation of activities by the Board of Trustees. "In the spirit and cause of transparency and accountability to the Ghanaian people, the current Board of Trustees of The National Cathedral shall appoint an independent accounting firm to audit all public funds contributed to The National Cathedral.

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This appointment of an auditor shall take place before the deferment of the activities of the Board of Trustees," the Resolution stated.<img alt="" class="wp-image-576770" style="aspect-ratio:1;width:1034px;height:auto"/> Rev. Eastwood Anaba, Founder of Eastwood Anaba MinistriesHowever, according to the clergymen, the Board failed to act on its request.

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Government's inaction, they said, would affect their conscience and faith should they remain adamant and support such an initiative.It is their aim that the project be "built on a foundation of integrity, efficiency and quality while gamering and maintaining public trust and support."This statement indicates that the project currently lacks these virtues and a lot more as alleged by Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

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Meanwhile, the National Cathedral Secretariat is yet to respond to the recent resignations of the two men of God.The Board of Trustees, which stood at 13, is currently at 8.1. Apostle Prof. Opoku Onyinah, former Chairman of the Church of Pentecost – Chairperson2. Most Rev. Bishop Justice Ofei Akrofi, Anglican Archbishop Emeritus – Member3. Rt. Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Martey, former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church – Member4. Most Rev T. K.

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Awotwi Pratt, Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church – Member5. Rev Dr Joyce Aryee, Executive Director, Salt and Light Ministries – Member6. Rev Victor Kusi-Boateng, Founder of Power Chapel Worldwide – Member/Secretary7. Rev Dr Frimpong Manso, General Superintendent, Assemblies of God – Member8. Kingsley Ofosu Ntiamoah, Executive Director, Ghana Museums and Monuments BoardNote that during the inauguration of the Board, Most Rev Dr.

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Samuel Asante Antwi, was appointed Chairman by President Akufo-Addo in 2017, but he passed away in 2020.A 2017 report by Graphic Online announcing the inauguration of the Board read: "The board is chaired by a former Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Ghana, the Most Rev. Samuel Asante Antwi, with the Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, the Most Rev.

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Charles Palmer Buckle, as Vice-Chairperson, and the Founder and General Overseer of Power Chapel Worldwide, Prophet Kusi Boateng, as Secretary.The other members are the Chairman of the Church of Pentecost and President of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council, Apostle Dr Opoku Onyinah; the Founder of Salt and Light Ministries, Rev. Joyce Aryee; the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Right Rev. Prof.

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Cephas Omenyo; the Archbishop of the Church of the Province of West Africa and Bishop of Accra, the Most Rev. Dr Justice Offei Akrofi; the Founder of Action Chapel International, Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams; the Founder and President of Fountain Gate Chapel, Rev.

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Eastwood Anaba; the Founder and Presiding Bishop of the Lighthouse Chapel International, Bishop Dag Heward Mills; the Founder of the International Central Gospel Church, Pastor Mensa Otabil, and Rev. Dr Yaw Frimpong Manso and Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Martey, both former Moderators of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana."Per the report, Most Rev T. K.

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Awotwi Pratt, Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church, was the newly added member as of 2022, as his name was absent from the list in 2017.

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