The Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has disclosed that Deputy Minister of Health, Dr. Grace Ayensu-Danquah, was personally advised by its Board Chairman to stop using the title “Professor,” but she rejected the counsel.
According to GTEC’s Director-General, Professor Ahmed Abdulai Jinapor, the matter was addressed in a private meeting arranged at the minister’s convenience. He revealed that the Board Chairman urged her to refrain from using the academic title, citing inconsistencies in her claims, but she ignored the advice.
“We gave the Honourable Minister the opportunity to meet the Board Chairman of GTEC at the place of her convenience and the time of her choice,” Prof. Jinapor explained on Joy FM’s Midday News. “The chairman persuaded her to stay away from using that title informed by the narrative that she gave. She didn’t heed to that.”
The controversy deepened when GTEC uncovered conflicting claims from the deputy minister’s camp. Dr. Ayensu-Danquah had initially stated on national television that she was a full professor from the University of Utah. However, her lawyers later clarified in a letter to GTEC that she was an assistant professor.
Further verification from the University of Utah confirmed that she only holds the rank of adjunct assistant professor, not a full professor.
Prof. Jinapor attributed the ongoing confusion to the legal advice given to the deputy minister, criticizing her lawyers for worsening the matter.
“I must say on authority, I think the issues pertaining to all these inconsistencies are probably emanating from the advice by her lawyers,” he said. “I don’t think they are doing a good service to her when we look at all that is going on. I think the lawyers need to be fired.”
Meanwhile, the deputy minister’s legal team has issued GTEC a two-week ultimatum demanding a retraction of its position.
GTEC, however, has emphasized that it is not interested in a public confrontation but remains focused on protecting academic standards. The commission is still awaiting a formal appointment document from Dr. Ayensu-Danquah to bring the matter to closure.
