“He has forced all the universities in Ghana to give him a doctorate” Mahama on Akufo-Addo resurface

According to a report by Ghanaweb on Saturday, October 31, 2026, President John Mahama is facing fresh criticism over his acceptance of honorary doctorates, after an old video of him questioning the practice resurfaced online. Among those who have weighed in is Nana Akomea, the NPP’s 3rd National Vice Chairman.

The clip, shared on TikTok and spotted by GhanaWeb on October 30, 2026, dates back to Mahama’s years in opposition. Speaking at a campaign event, he took aim at then-President Nana Akufo-Addo for collecting honorary degrees from universities while still in office.

Mahama argued that a sitting president should complete his term first and leave it to the universities to decide afterwards whether his record merited such recognition. He accused Akufo-Addo of pressuring institutions into conferring the honours, claiming he had pushed every university in the country to award him a doctorate, and said he could not tell what he had done to get them there.

The video has returned to circulation following Mahama’s recent receipt of two honorary doctorates in Moscow in a single day. He became the first sitting Head of State to be honoured by the Russian University of Transport, which recognised his leadership and contribution to transport and logistics infrastructure. The second came from the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia.

By GhanaWeb’s count, Mahama has received nine honorary doctorates in total, four of them in 2026 alone:

Igbinedion University, Okada, Nigeria (2018)

Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, USA (2026)

Russian University of Transport, Moscow (2026)

Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, Moscow (2026)

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