Obtaining a degree from a university is serious business which involves commitment, dedication and scholarship. To give an example, my bachelor’s degree certificate (awarded by the University of Colombo) attests that I was awarded the degree for having successfully completed the course of study prescribed by the University and for having passed the examination.
by Ruwantissa Abeyratne
(June 17, Montreal, Sri Lanka Guardian) Gamini Weerakoon’s recent article Quacks: Medical, Political, Academic And Criminal Galore is an eye-opener to a disconcerting trend that undermines the value of higher education and disingenuously misleads the public. Often medical quacks assume the role for financial gain whereas other academic quacks use it for embellishing their name, personality and stature with a view to gaining from the society they thrive in respect which they would not otherwise have. As a child, I was amused by a story recounted by my father whenever we drove past Kadawatha on our way to Kandy, when we passed what was purported to be a medical clinic which bore the name Leelanandasiri M.D. (not the real name) . As it turned out, M.D. was this person’s initials which he had tendentiously placed after his name to establish a lucrative “medical practice”. He probably prescribed Amborum Special to every patient who consulted him.
Seriously though, this egregious practice must be criminalized (if it has not been already) in much the same way that a forged signature on a commercial transaction is. Technically, both these practices are falsifications of identity which abuse the trust of society and cheat those who are gullible. It must be a criminal offence for any person to use the prefix Dr. on the basis of a fake doctorate procured by the payment of money to a place which is not recognized by educational authorities as an institution of higher learning that is entitled to award doctoral degrees.
Obtaining a degree from a university is serious business which involves commitment, dedication and scholarship. To give an example, my bachelor’s degree certificate (awarded by the University of Colombo) attests that I was awarded the degree for having successfully completed the course of study prescribed by the University and for having passed the examination. My master’s degree certificate (from Monash University, Melbourne Australia) attests that I have fulfilled all the requirements and passed all the prescribed examinations. My Ph.D certificate (awarded by the University of Colombo) which is in Sinhala (with an English version in reverse) states that in recognition of research submitted to the university I have been awarded the degree and title “Shastra Visharadha” (I must admit to being overwhelmed and daunted by this imposing academic recognition). My degree of doctor of civil laws certificate (an advanced doctorate awarded by McGill University, Montreal) is written in Latin and states inter alia …cum curriculum studiorum preascriptum cum industria confecerit et omnes expectiones… the translation of which attests that I have fully realised the expectations of the doctoral degree programme by completing the prescribed curriculum.
I wonder what a fake diploma would say of the holder? That he/she had acquired sufficient wealth with which to purchase certificate and title? And how do these people live through their deceit ? In 2002 the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) of New South Wales (NSW) investigated a person who had seemingly engaged in corrupt conduct by falsely representing himself as having certain tertiary academic qualifications for the purpose of applying for and gaining positions of employment with the Maritime Services Board, NSW Health, the Department of Business and Regional Development, Newcastle Port Corporation and Sydney Water Corporation, and for an appointment as Conjoint Professor to the Graduate School of Business at the University of Newcastle. ICAC found that the person had also engaged in corrupt conduct by creating and using false documents purporting to be academic degrees and making false representations to a Justice of the Peace that these documents were genuine.
ICAC recommended changes to public sector recruitment practices to help prevent such conduct in future. These recommendations involved employers seeking verification of an applicant’s qualifications prior to their appointment and having applicants sign a certificate declaring that the qualifications they assert are genuine and that any false claims can lead to their dismissal.
There is legislation in some jurisdictions in the United States which criminalize false academic claims. One such provision prescribes that no person in the state may claim, either orally or in writing, to possess an academic degree, or the title associated with the said degree, unless the person has, in fact, been awarded the said degree from an institution that is: accredited by a regional or professional accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education or the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation; provided, operated, and supported by a state government or any of its political subdivisions or by the Federal Government; a school, institute, college, or university chartered outside the United States, the academic degree from which has been validated by an accrediting agency approved by the United States Department of Education as equivalent to the baccalaureate or post baccalaureate degree conferred by a regionally accredited college or university in the United States; licensed by the State Board of Independent Colleges and Universities or exempt from licensure; or a religious seminary, institute, college, or university which offers only educational programs that prepare students for a religious vocation, career, occupation, profession, or lifework, and the nomenclature of whose certificates, diplomas, or degrees clearly identifies the religious character of the educational program.
The provision goes on to say that no person awarded a doctorate degree from an institution not listed shall claim in the state, either orally or in writing, the title “Dr.” before the person’s name or any mark, appellation, or series of letters, numbers, or words, such as, but not limited to, “Ph.D”, ”Ed.D” “D.N” or “D.Th” which signifies, purports, or is generally taken to signify satisfactory completion of the requirements of a doctorate degree, after the person’s name. A person who violates these provisions commits a misdemeanour of the first degree, punishable as provided in the Act. In addition to any penalty imposed, a violator shall be subject to any other penalty provided by law, including, but not limited to, suspension or revocation of the violator’s license or certification to practice an occupation or profession.
The Merriam Dictionary states: “to lie is to make an untrue statement with intent to deceive”. Deceit is the action or practice of deceiving someone by concealing or misrepresenting the truth. The law should deal with the liars and deceivers who represent themselves to have what they do not and be what they are not, accordingly.
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