July 25, 2026
Opinion & Commentary
Business & Industrial
Politics
Increasing the number of Universities didn’t help much to advance government efficiency. It only added an army of disgruntled youth who is dislocated from its traditional social milieu and is scattered across major cities and has become a menace to itself and family. Some are absorbed by ‘the tribal’ link into the Civil Service and are kept on payroll for doing ‘nothing’. The kudos goes to the Auditor General as well as media outlets. Who would forget the long lists made public regarding the non- resident employees kept on payrolls particularly in the newly established Regions?
All these third Generation Ethnic-Universities incubated by EPRDF are disgraces to the history of Higher education in Ethiopia. They are good only to celebrate the legacies of their respective tribe’s outstanding Vocalist by awarding ‘Honoris Causa’ Degrees. I don’t even understand this mythical association universities have with musicians. On this one I have said it before and I will say again-hats off to Dr.Brehanu Nega and Colleagues. The Premier is also right to declare “no more ground will be broken for public University on my watch”.
Every time a report of wasted budget audit is released these Universities dominate the list. Here the wage earning public is being squeezed dry paying income and endless secondary taxes (as end line consumer) yet his sweat and blood is expended to purchase Revolution brand vehicles for Universities.
Speaking of higher education, forget the ‘honoris causa degrees’, the real deal- the actual Ph.D- has become the butt of all sorts of practical jokes.
I had assumed it was a pun in bad taste when I heard an established Addis entrepreneur was looking for a grounded Scholar who could overhaul the Company’ s Organizational structure and induce an efficient digital friendly system of management that supports shareholders intervention whenever necessary.
At first I was like ‘fair enough’. I thought the catch was the qualifier ‘…that supports shareholders intervention’. I know scholars have issues with such intervention. I was totally off-mark.
The actual precondition was the hardened businessman had unequivocally made his intention apparent. Though he is looking for a scholar, under no circumstance would he retain the service of a Ph.D. Again I brushed the idea as the “sour grape” thing. You know the anecdote about Aesop’s wily fox that couldn’t reach the high hanging mouthwatering ripe grape and tries to deal with its unrequited hunger by discrediting the quality of the grape.
Then I remembered reading an interesting piece featured on the weekly Capital newspaper casting serious doubt on the wisdom of constituting a Ph.D. cabinet. Then I had the bad luck to tune in to footage of an ETV news segment where the guest wouldn’t sign out without declaring ‘on air’ that he was a Ph.D. The anchor couldn’t hide a smirk. I have come to learn the guest is a Juris Doctor, rather a Ph.D., and the anchor should have made a point of mentioning it but if for whatever reason he’d missed it, the guest should have signed out without reminding ‘the whole wide world’ that he is a Ph.D. I mean after all he wasn’t the subject of the news segment.
The twerking Ph.D?
The icing on the cake? There is this Ph.D. I had heard about who celebrates joining the exclusive club (allegedly 2% of the world population) every fortnight by doing “twerks” on social media. I sure will search the dissertation of the twerking Ph.D. on Academia.edu. I kinda liked her a lot. She is breaking the dry stoicism of traditional scholarship.
Coming back to public expenditure, the bureaucracy beginning from the Cabinet is manned by a record number of Ph.Ds but the deliverables don’t match the intimidating aura of scholarship. I am afraid the degree has become so commonplace that it has lost its appeal. Yet funds are still being allocated to train more Ph.Ds.
Bottom-line in my view the third public sector that is consuming a disproportionate amount of the budget is higher education. Thus, imitating Ron Reagan’s entreaty to Gorbachev to have the courage to tear down the Berlin Wall, I say to Dr. Brehanu Nega- shut down the Condo-Universities.
I think we need to begin holding government officials to account for every penny expended. It is our money, goddamn it, they have no right to give it away gratuitously like they actually own it. Even royalties have quit giving away cash and benefits at will. The law requires them to institutionalize it by founding and registering a Charity. Sometimes our folks here actually act like reigning Royalities. I mean the way they are giving away houses and cars to former buddies and colleagues from the “bottom of their kind heart” is quite unsettling.
What we need in this country is a consumer right advocate like Ralph Nadar. Contrary to conventional wisdom traders pay little tax save perhaps corporate profit tax. Otherwise, they transfer the bulk of the tax levied back on us-consumers-maintaining their profit and cost margins. We are the real tax payers and we need to hold the government to account.
God Bless.
The writer can be reached at : estefanoussamuel@yahoo.com
Editor’s Note: Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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