The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has formally requested the President of the Ghana Union of Traders’ Association (GUTA), Joseph Obeng, to provide evidence supporting his use of the title “Dr.”
In a letter dated May 14, 2025, and signed by GTEC’s Deputy Director General, Prof. Augustine Ocloo, the Commission stated: “The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission has noted your continuous use of the title ‘doctor’ i.e. Dr. Joseph Obeng. The Commission would like to know the process, the time, and which institution awarded you the doctorate title. For clarity, the Commission expresses its deep concern regarding the increasing prevalence of honorary doctorates such as yours that are conferred upon individuals by various institutions, both in Ghana and abroad.”
GTEC further explained that using honorary titles like “Dr” as part of one’s official name is considered unethical and violates provisions within the Education Regulatory Bodies Act, 2020 (Act 1023), as well as other laws governing higher education in the country.
In response to this, the Commission has advised Mr. Obeng to “exercise personal responsibility regarding this issue and refrain from using the honorary title ‘doctor’, ‘Dr’ as part of your name.”
The letter also warned that failure to comply with this directive would result in consequences, although it did not specify what those might be.
