The founder of UT Holdings, Prince Kofi Amoabeng, is facing condemnation for a comment he made which has deemed to be disrespectful to women.
In an interview on Accra-based Class FM in which Mr Amoabeng spoke about the failures of Ghana’s educational system, he said UT Holdings re-trains job applicants for up to two years before they are considered qualified.
“You cannot even trust the people that have come out,†he said.
He went on to add that the company views beautiful women who obtain first class with suspicion and, therefore, makes an effort to ascertain the authenticity of the degree.
“I used to tell people that if you are a lady and come to apply for a job with a First Class and you are very beautiful, I suspect the [authenticity] of the First Class. So, we have to find a way to test whether it is genuine or not,†he said.
The comment has sparked outraged on social media, with many, especially women, condemning the businessman.
A journalist, Nana Ama Agyemang Asante, wondered why Mr Amoabeng did not question the qualification of men.
“He should ask himself why he thinks a woman can't be smart and beautiful at the same time? Why is he not suspicious of men with first class degrees? He should ask himself why he isn't suspicious of the men. What in world made him ask such an inappropriate and illogical question? Perhaps some soul-searching will help him and all those who think women and girls can't make it at any point without offering sexual favors confront their misogyny,†she said.
Prof. H Kwasi Prempeh, a legal scholar and active social media commentator, compared Mr Amoabeng’s comment to Kennedy Agyapong’s accusation that EC boss Charlotte Osei got her job by giving sexual favours.
“Note to all who came down hard on that notoriously politically incorrect opposition politician who accused the EC boss of sleeping her way to her plum job. This UT "test" is cut from the same cloth and casts the stereotype far more widely. Any reason why it merits less outrage?†he wrote on Facebook.