The Flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has commented on the debate regarding the value of being a Ghanaian PhD holder versus being a holder of a Dutch passport.

Speaking at a public lecture organised by the Christian Service University at Kumasi on the theme 'Sustainability of Democracy in Africa: The Ghanaian Experience,' on June 19, 2024, Mahama likened the debate to the analogy of comparing apples to oranges.

He said that the only reason Ghanaians are having this debate is because of the economic mess created by the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, which is forcing a lot of people to leave the country.

"There’s widespread despair and anguish amongst our people, leading to an active debate on social media about whether securing a foreign passport to do a menial job in Europe is better than holding a PhD in Ghana.

"It (the debate) is a reflection of the adversity into which our nation has been plunged; otherwise, there is no basis for comparison between a visa and a PhD," he said.

The former president said that education is the most important resource a human being can acquire, while a passport only facilitates travel.

"If you had a PhD and you had an opportunity to travel, you would be a more high-value citizen in that country that you have gone to," he added.

Background:

Academics in Ghana became enraged after a Ghanaian-Netherlands citizen claimed that his Dutch passport offers more opportunities than a Ghanaian PhD.

According to the man, who is known as Mr. Happiness, the opportunities available to him as a Dutch citizen surpass those a Ghanaian PhD can offer to anyone.

He argued that he can easily obtain a visa to the United States of America just because he has a Netherlands passport; something a PhD holder in Ghana cannot do.

His claims have been met with fierce outrage from the academic community in Ghana, who say it is about time people give respect to academics.

To them, obtaining a PhD is not about the monetary benefits but rather how the knowledge acquired is used to impact society and change fortunes.

One PhD student at the University of Ghana, Chris Atadika, reacting to the claim said, "If you're a PhD holder and you believe that the essence of your PhD primarily lies in how much you should be able to earn in terms of monetary value after your PhD, and you're earning less than you expected, so you believe that your PhD is worthless, then I'm sorry to tell you that you are worthless, not your PhD.

"...The PhD training firstly emphasizes one's contribution to the body of knowledge (literature) and secondly, the significance of one's research study on policy and practice in that field, all through research. Unless, of course, you enrolled in some strange PhD program somewhere, but where does it say in the PhD training that the more you earn after your PhD, the more valuable your PhD is?" he quizzed.

Another senior government official, Sandra Ewool, said, "Dutch passport mpo nie, na America passport deɛ, they weeeeeee press press our necks here..."

Several other comments do not agree with the claim that a Netherlands passport offers opportunities that a Ghanaian PhD cannot offer.

Watch Mahama's remarks in the video below:



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