Hassan Ayariga is leader of the All Peoples Congress (APC)
Leader of the All Peoples Congress (APC), Hassan Ayariga, has defended the use of the ‘Dr’ prefix to his name.
According to him, he has three doctorates. Two of which are honorary, while one was earned through rigorous academic work.
He says the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) should have written to him to verify whether his doctorate was earned through academic work or not.
However, nothing of the sort was done before they came publicly to tarnish his hard-won reputation.
He intends to sue GTEC for the damage it caused him by the public ridicule.
“I woke up this morning and all I could hear on social media is that GTEC says I cannot use my Doctorate Degree. I ask how? I didn’t get any letter from GTEC, so how did they come to that conclusion?” he questioned.
When asked if he has a doctorate, the APC leader retorted, “Of course. If I tell you, then I will not be able to sue them. I studied for it. I have three doctorates, two as honorary and one from my school. They did not even ask me to submit it, and I didn’t get a letter from them. Why do we behave in this way?
“Somebody like Hassan Ayariga, you want to ask him about his doctorate, the most important thing is to issue him a formal letter and ask him to write to you. Now I heard it from the news that GTEC has stripped Hassan Ayariga of his doctorate,” he said.
Hassan Ayariga intends to use due process to deal with GTEC for defamation.
“It is in political science. Not from a University in Ghana, but I won’t tell you. Once they have failed to follow due process, I will use the due process to correct them and sue them for defamation of character. Before you start telling someone not to use something publicly, you must have investigated and written to that person, wait for their response and hear from them,” he stated.
Background
The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has formally directed political figure Hassan Ayariga to immediately stop using the title “Dr.”, citing a lack of verifiable documentation to support its legitimacy.
In a letter dated July 14, 2025, sighted by GraphicOnline, GTEC accused Ayariga of failing to provide evidence clarifying the origin and nature of his doctoral title despite prior requests. The Commission demanded:
– The name of the awarding institution,
– Confirmation of whether the degree was earned or honorary,
– The date of conferment, and
– Details of the academic process followed.
“To date, the Commission has not received any response from you. This continued silence is unacceptable,” GTEC stated. It further warned that the unauthorised use of academic titles “is misleading and inconsistent with the academic protocols and standards governing the conferment and use of academic ranks in Ghana.”
