Minority Members of Parliament have blocked plans by the government to reconstruct the Accra International Conference Centre at a staggering cost of €116 million (GH₵‎1.3 billion).

The Minority also blocked proposals by the government to open new Ghanaian embassies in Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago & Mexico.

In a Facebook post, NDC MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa stated that the government cannot be defaulting on its loan obligations and “imposing crude haircuts, particularly on pensions for the vulnerable aged and still be pursuing fanciful projects which can be deferred to better economic times in the future.”

Meanwhile, Parliament has approved an amount of over GH¢800 million for the services of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration for the year 2023.

The Minority in Parliament has also reiterated its rejection of the GH¢80 million budgetary allocations for the construction of the National Cathedral.

This comes after a vote against the estimate at the committee level on Tuesday.

Speaking to Citi News, a member of the Trades and Industry Committee of Parliament, Murtala Mohammed said the Minority is hopeful that the house will approve the budgetary allocation to the Ministry of Tourism excluding the funds for the National Cathedral.

The Minority said the move followed the failure of the Finance Ministry to account for an amount of GH¢114 million out of the GH¢339 million spent so far on the project.

The National Cathedral project has seen a lot of controversies, as many Ghanaians continue to question the prudence of the state financing an edifice that is said to be President Akufo-Addo’s personal pledge to God.

But President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has been unwavering in his resolve to build the National Cathedral in Ghana.

In the 2023 budget, GH¢80 million was allocated to fund the project despite the current economic crisis.