Accra:The Presidential Special Envoy for Reparations, Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, has addressed the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) regarding the use of his honorific title "Dr."
According to Ghana Web, Spio-Garbrah clarified in a letter to the Director-General of GTEC, Prof Ahmed Jinapor Abdulai, that the "Dr" title was awarded to him honoris causa by Middlebury College in Vermont, United States, in 2002. He noted that he did not routinely use the title immediately after it was conferred.
He explained that it was after his appointment as Chief Executive Officer of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) in London in 2003 that he was directed by the Board to use the honorific title in his official and professional communications.
Spio-Garbrah emphasized his respect for those who have earned doctoral degrees through academic effort and clarified that he does not hold an academically earned PhD nor has he claimed to. He holds an honorary doctorate from Middlebury University, conferred during an academic congregation in May 2002, with documentary evidence provided.
He highlighted that the same institution awarded a similar honorary degree to former US President William Jefferson Clinton the following year, demonstrating the university's academic standing. Spio-Garbrah included full documentation to clarify the situation publicly.