Chief Justice Backs GTEC’s Crackdown on Fake Titles in Ghana’s Tertiary Institutions
Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie has praised GTEC for sanitising Ghana’s tertiary education space, urging the commission to continue its crackdown on fake professors and unearned academic titles.
Chief Justice Commends GTEC for Sanitising Tertiary Education Space
The Chief Justice, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, has thrown his full support behind the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) for its ongoing efforts to sanitise the country’s tertiary education system.
During a courtesy visit to the GTEC office in Accra last Friday, the Chief Justice applauded the Director-General, Professor Ahmed Jinapor, and his team for their bold reforms aimed at restoring credibility and integrity to higher education.
“This sanitisation exercise that is going on is good,” Justice Baffoe-Bonnie said.
“If you have not got public support for it, you should know that silently, there are lots and lots of people who may not be able to come out, but we all support you. So, continue with it.”
The visit was to officially introduce the Chief Justice and his key team members to the GTEC leadership and to discuss matters relating to legal education in Ghana. He was accompanied by the Judicial Secretary, Musah Ahmed; the Acting Director of the Ghana Law School, Professor Raymond A. Atuguba; and other officials from the Chief Justice’s Secretariat.
“Our first aim is to congratulate you on the good work you are doing,” he told Prof. Jinapor.
“Everybody Is Now a Professor”
Reflecting on his upbringing in Goaso, the Chief Justice recalled a time when academic titles were rare and highly respected.
“When I was growing up, professors were a very rare breed,” he said. “But now, everybody is a professor, everybody is a doctor.”
He compared the current trend in Ghana to his experiences in Nigeria, where honorary and unearned titles had become commonplace.
“We used to think Ghana was not like that,” he noted. “But what we are seeing in the public space these days has gone beyond even what we saw in Nigeria. Everybody is a doctor, everybody is a professor.”
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie encouraged GTEC to remain firm in its mission to clean up the system.
GTEC Vows to Protect Integrity
In response, Prof. Jinapor expressed gratitude for the historic visit, noting that it was the first time a Chief Justice had ever visited the institution, including its predecessors—the National Accreditation Board (NAB) and the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE).
“This is the first time,” he said. “We are deeply honoured.”
He assured the Chief Justice that GTEC was ready to collaborate closely with the judiciary to ensure that reforms in legal education are “done, and done right.”
Addressing the issue of fake academic credentials, Prof. Jinapor warned that the problem had expanded beyond “fake doctors” to include “fake professors.”
“If we are not careful, we may even get a fake Chief Justice,” he remarked. “We honestly think the tertiary environment should be sanitised.”
He revealed that GTEC had uncovered troubling information within the legal profession, suggesting that some individuals lacked the basic qualifications required to sit for law examinations, yet had been called to the Bar.
“We are conducting our investigations. Once we are certain, we will bring the matter to the General Legal Council for further action,” he said.
“At the end of the day, we want the environment to be clean. We cannot have a corrupted legal system,” he added, stressing that legal education must stand as a pillar against wrongdoing in society.
Prof. Jinapor reaffirmed GTEC’s commitment to protecting the integrity of Ghana’s tertiary education space and ensuring that academic titles retain their true meaning.
