South African court halts burial of Zambia's ex-president Lungu
Lungu, who was Zambia's head of state from 2015 to 2021, died in South Africa on June 5 while receiving medical treatment.
He and his successor, current President Hakainde Hichilema, were longstanding political rivals, and Lungu's family said he did not want Hichilema to be present at his funeral.
Hichilema's government, however, wants Lungu's body brought back to Zambia for a state funeral and approached Pretoria High Court to try to block his burial.
Deputy Judge President Aubrey Phago Ledwaba told the court on Wednesday that lawyers for Lungu's family and Zambia's government had agreed that the burial would not go ahead for now. The Zambian government has until July 4 to explain why it wants to repatriate Lungu's body.
Zambian Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha said negotiations with Lungu's family would continue before the next court hearing.
Makebi Zulu, a Lungu family spokesman, said they did not believe Hichilema would give Lungu a dignified send-off.
Lungu had hoped to make a bid to return to office in next year's presidential election, but Zambia's Constitutional Court last year ruled he would be ineligible, because he had already served two terms.
South Africa's government has said it has an obligation to respect the wishes of Lungu's family, but it feels a state burial in Zambia would be the most fitting outcome.
All of Zambia's other presidents since its independence from Britain in 1964 have been buried at a designated site in the capital, Lusaka.
Analysts say Lungu's legacy as Zambian president was chequered. He was praised for a massive road-building programme but also ran the country's public finances deeply into the red.
Instead of the Johannesburg burial his family had scheduled for Wednesday, a prayer service was held at a Catholic cathedral.
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Why Ghana dey pursue pipo wit fake and 'unearned' doctorate and oda academic titles
If you be pesin wey dey di public eye, make sure say di doctorate or academic title you don add to your name, na proper one. Sake of di Ghana tertiary education commission (Gtec) bin dey pursue public officials and oda ogbonge pipo wey dey use fake doctorate, honorary titles and oda academic titles. Director general for Gtec, Professor Ahmed Jinapor Abdulai tok say to dey use honorary academic titles na against di kontris education regulatory bodies Act 2020 (Act 1023). "Pipo wey bin dey use titles like "Dr." or "Professor" sake of honorary award don dey break di law wey dem go face prosecution." Inside one press conference, oga Jinapor Abdulai explain say "even di accredited institutions wey gat di authority to confer honorary degrees - pesin no fit use such titles as if dem be earned academic qualification." Im tok say di law bin give Gtec di mandate to regulate how pipo dey use dis titles. "If pesin misuse such titles, e fit result for penalties of up to 250 penalty units, imprisonment for up to one year or both." Di Ghana tertiary education commission for di last few months bin dey lead campaign to "name and shame" public figures and oda pipo wey continue to dey use dis "unearned titles" afta dia warning. According to di commission di way pipo bin dey abuse dis "Dr" titles - especially politicians, religious leaders, herbalists and oda businessmen sake of one group or school don give dem as honorary doctorate, don become too much. "Sake of di way dem bin dey abuse di titles, e don dey mislead di public especially pipo dey mistake dis honorary recipients say dem be qualified medical professionals or academic experts," oga Abdulai Jinapor explain. E don dey "threaten academic credibility wey we neva dey recognize titles like honorary professor or honorary doctor for any official or academic setting." If pesin bin get honorary award sake of im contribution to di society, dat neva be di same as academic or professional qualification. Di deputy health minister and odas wey dem ask to stop using dia 'fake' titles Gtec bin write to di chief of staff for di presidency make im ensure say di deputy health minister Dr Grace Ayensu-Danquah drop di title of 'Professor' wey she don add to her name. For one 4 August letter, Gtec bin ask di deputy health minister say make she provide verifiable evidence of her appointment to di rank of professor by 11 August deadline. Gtec tok say lawyers for di deputy health minister bin respond wey dem tok say dem appoint dia client as Assistant Professor of surgery by di university of Utah for di US. Di lawyers bin question di authority of Gtec to ask for such evidence when di appointment of dia client (di deputy health minister) don happen outside di jurisdiction of Ghana. But Gtec insist say she gatz to provide evidence say she bin earn di 'Professor' title. Na so di commission don write to di university of Utah to confam if Dr Grace Ayensu-Danquah na professor true true. According to state-owned newspaper Daily Graphic, di university of Utah bin respond wit one letter wia Prof. Bradford Rockwell wey be vice chair for academic affairs for di department of surgery don sign for 7 August. Inside di letter, im tok say di deputy health minister na "adjunct assistant professor" for di department of surgery for di university of Utah. But Gtec tok say di university tok differnt tin wey her lawyers also bin tok different tin. While di university of Utah tok say she be 'adjunct assistant professor', her lawyers inside di letter to di commission tok say she be 'assistant professor.' Gtec now write to di deputy health minister say for Ghana, pesin wey be adjunct assistant professor na part-time lecturer wey neva fit compare to di rank of even senior lecturer, not to tok about professor. During her vetting to become deputy health minister for July, dem bin ask her how she don get her title as professor. Dr Grace Ayensu-Danquah explain say "I be professor of surgery for di university of Utah for di US, I don defend two thesis wey I bin do so many publications, I no fit to even count." She also add say "I don do plenty research too wey I no fit count, I don teach surgery for di past 15 years; sake of surgery na skill, we bin teach for di theatre. Na full professor I be." But di Ghana tertiary education commission insist say di deputy health minister neva be professor. Inside one interview on top local radio station Joy Fm, di Gtec boss Prof Abdulai Jinapor tok say "we don give di minister di opportunity to meet wit di board chairman at her place of convenience - wey we tok her say make she neva use di professor title, but she neva listen." "Now her lawyers bin dey give us two weeks to retract, I neva sabi wetin dem wan make we retract, but I gat to state am here say her lawyers no try give her for dis advice." Di Gtec boss add say "we bin tink say immediately di university of Utah bin write to us wey dem tok say she be adjunct assistant professor, common search for dat rank for Ghana, na part-time lecturer." Di commission say dem go dey "compelled to take legal action against di deputy health minister on di grounds of public deception, if she continue to dey use di 'Professor' Oda ogbonge pipo wey dem ask to drop dia 'fake' doctorate title Di central region chairman of di govment party National Democratic Congress (NDC) oga Richard Asiedu don formally drop di use of di title "Professor" afta di Ghana tertiary education commission bin warn am. Gtec bin write to di party executive on 28 June 2025, to ask say make im provide verifiable evidence of how im earn di title or make im drop am altogether. Oga Richard Asiedu bin respond to Gtec wey im issue public disclaimer. Im tok say "as pesin wey be law-abiding for dis kontri, I don take di warning from Gtec so I don stop to dey use di title professor." Oga Asiedu bin dey use di title for di last three years, afta im receive as honorary award from one university for Ukraine. "I neva sabi say pesin no fit use honorary title until Gtec don tok me. I wan put for record say Alfred Nobel University for Dnipro, Ukraine wey confer di title for me sake of di work I bin dey do for human development." Oga Richard Asiedu on im 1 August public notice explain further say make di public take note of di change for im name and act accordingly. Rashid Tanko Computer - CEO of Ghana investment fund for electronic communications (Gifec) On 3 June 2025, Gtec bin ask oga Rashid Tanko-Computer to stop to dey use di title "Dr". Oga Tanko-Computer for many years bin dey call imserf Dr Rashid Tanko-Computer until di tertiary education commission don write to warn am. Di commission tok say dia investigation show say di school wey don allegedly award di doctorate to di govment official no dey accredited. Gtec tok say di PhD from "Kingsnow University" no dey valid as im bin from "unaccredited institution". Na so Gtec order oga Rashid Tanko-Computer say make im remove di title from all official documents and platforms. At di time, oga Tanko-Computer explain for one local TV network JoyPrime say "na lecturer I be wey I don teach students for long. If you give attention to dis kind mata, na waste of time." "My students neva fail. I bin earn di PhD from Kingsnow university one online school wia I start di programme for 2012 wey u finish 2016." But di tertiary education commission insist say na fake doctorate wey dem warn am say make im neva use di title again for im public documents and records. Factcheck Ghana don find say "Kingsnow university" na degree mill wey neva get personalities as facility members. "We don find say di university bin get active website bifor but now e dey defunct since 2019. Wey di university no dey accredited." Di latest tori be say oga Rashid Tanko-Computer don drop di "fake Dr title." For im public engagement on top local media platforms, dem bin dey introduce am wit im name without di title. Former presidential candidate Hassan Ayariga insist say im doctorate na legit but Gtec no gree Di founder and leader of di All Peoples' Congress (APC) Hassan Ayariga na former presidential candidate. Im bin contest all di kontris elections since 2012. But for 14 July 2025, im na one of di ogbonge pipo wia di Ghana tertiary education commission bin ask to "provide verifiable evidence say im doctorate na genuine". Di letter by Gtec for di public bin tok say oga Hassan Ayariga bin tok different tori about im PhDs - one for political science and anoda for business management togeda wit oda honorary doctorates. Di APC founder tok say im get three doctorates na so im tok say im go take legal action against di commission. Oga Hassan Ayariga tok on top JoyNews say "Gtec don get agenda, wey dem neva write to me directly, na on top social media I bin see di letter." But Gtec boss Professor Abdulai Jinapor insist say make di APC founder provide di evidence of im PhD and if dem verify say na genuine no be fake, im go fit continue to use am. In response Hassan Ayariga tok for di TV programme say "you bin destroy my reputation by di way you handle dis mata, how long e go take for me to enter my room and pull out piece of paper wey go show say I get di PhD?." "I gat two honorary degrees and one PhD for political science, so I be Dr., na so I go take legal action against Gtec for destroying my name." Di Gtec boss wey bin dey on top di same TV show explain say "we neva dey witch-hunt anybody. All we want na evidence of di PhD." Gtec ask two lawmakers for parliament to drop Dr title For 3 June 2025 di tertiary education commission don write to di member of parliament for Awutu Senya East, Phillis Naa Koryoo Okunor say make she provide evidence of her doctorate title or remove am from her official documents and record. Di commission bin ask her to remove di title sake of she no get "verifiable academic credentials to support her claim." On di same day, di commission write to anoda lawmaker, MP for Gomoa East, Desmond De-Graft Paitoo say make im remove im "Dr" title. Dem bin ask am to provide evidence of di legitimacy of di title, including di school wey award di degree and di process dem take confer di doctorate. For di same month of July, Gtec bin also write to di chief executive officer (CEO) of di ambulance service at di time, Dr Nuhu Zakaria say make im drop di "Professor" title im bin dey use. Gtec don acknowledge at di time say dem sabi say oga Nuhu Zakariah na medical doctor but wetin dem dey ask di evidence of im professorship. "We neva get any verifiable evidence wey don show say you bin dey hold any substantive academic position." Not long afta, di president bin remove di CEO for di ambulance service wey im appoint new pesin as oga for di ambulance service. E no dey clear if na sake of di "Professor" title wahala wey make di president remove am from di ambulance service. Academic title rank for Ghana For Ghana, established protocols dey for di award and use of dis kind titles and ranks. Gtec say standards dey wey don provide how di academic ranks and titles dey awarded. Di academic progression for di kontri na to move from - Assistant lecturer to - Lecturer to - Senior lecturer to - Associate Professor to - Professor (full professor) For university to confer professor title for pesin for di kontri, di pesin gat to comune academic qualification wit ogbonge research contribution, togeda wit expertise for di specific field. Na academic rank wey dey require formal appointment or promotion by di university. Di university also don dey consider oda factors like teaching and mentorship credentials, service to di university and community. Di system na different from wetin dey happun for di US. For dia, some universities bin dey call all teaching staff for dia as professor. But di Ghana system na different, e get proper structure and specific hierarchy wit specific ranks wey I already bin mention. Oda countries wey ban "honorary doctorate" titles Di ministry of education for Ethiopia don announce fresh direction wey bin dey ban govment officials and public officers from being nominated for honorary doctorate degrees. Di minister of education Professor Berhanu Nega tok for one 23 July letter tok say dis na "to ensure say only well -established institutions bin meet academic standards" "For any school to confer doctorate, dem gat to bin graduate at least eight rounds of students, offer PhD programme and meet recognised national and international academic standards. Di Ethiopian education ministry add say "pipo wey receive honorary doctorates no dey permitted to use di title "Doctor" or "Honorary Doctor" or any oda similar designations outside di one wey di institution bin dey award. Dis according to di education minister, na to safeguard di integrity of academic honours and to ensure say only credible institutions don dey award am. For September 2024, Nigeria don ban foreign universities wey chop accuse of awarding fake degrees. Early dat year, di kontri suspend degrees wey Nigerians don obtain from universities for Benin and Togo. Dem later open am to cover some universities for Kenya, Uganda and Ghana. Di authorities tok say dem wan "maintain credibility of dia educational system and protect employers from potential fraudulent practices."
