By Ruth Serwaa Asare
The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has ordered the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Kenneth Ashigbey, to stop using the title “Dr.” following the Commission’s determination that his doctoral certificate from the Swiss Management Centre (SMC) is invalid.
In a statement issued on Friday, October 10, 2025, and signed by its Director-General, Prof. Ahmed Jinapor Abdulai, GTEC explained that the decision was based on findings from an investigation into a petition questioning the authenticity of Mr. Ashigbey’s Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) qualification.
The Commission confirmed that Mr. Ashigbey obtained the DBA from the Swiss Management Centre and submitted his certificate and transcripts for verification. However, discrepancies were found between the documents. The certificate was issued by the Swiss Management Centre (SMC), while the transcript bore the name Swiss Management Centre (SMC) University.
Further verification revealed that, as of October 10, 2025, the institution was officially referred to only as the Swiss Management Centre, consistent with the name on the certificate issued on December 30, 2019. The transcript, however, dated January 15, 2020, included the word “University,” raising questions about its authenticity.
GTEC also noted concerns regarding the unusually long duration of the programme. Records showed that Mr. Ashigbey enrolled on February 10, 2010, and graduated on December 30, 2019 — spanning a nine-year period, which the Commission found irregular for such a programme.
Citing its powers under Section 7(i) of the Education Regulatory Bodies Act, 2020 (Act 1023), GTEC declared the DBA certificate invalid and directed Mr. Ashigbey to provide evidence that the “Dr.” title has been removed from all professional and public platforms, including official documents, websites, and letterheads.
The Commission emphasized that the directive forms part of its responsibility to uphold academic standards and ensure that only legitimate qualifications are recognised in Ghana. A full assessment of the case, it added, remains ongoing.
One Response
STOLEN VALOR!
Any Senior Public official who is found to have stolen and abused the title “Dr.” MUST be forced to resign.
“Professor Doctor” Ayensu who is both an MP and a Deputy Minister was found to have stolen the title “Professor” and she must resign too. You can’t equate the title “Professor” in the United States to the title “Professor” in Ghana.
“Professor in the United States is equivalent to a regular “Lecturer” in Ghana and a Professor in Ghana is a FULL Professor who has been called into Professorship by a competent academic board. Therefore Ayensu is NOT a full professor. She has lied and defrauded Ghanaians. We voted her as an MP because we thought she was a real Professor. She must resign at once!!!