Executive Director of Right Accountability Network Africa, Kevin Gyimah, is urging the government to assign an independent body, not the Ghana Police Service, to investigate the alleged assault on businessman Ibrahim Mahama, arguing that the police “should not be investigating itself.”

His comments come as the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and the Northern Regional Police Commander reportedly met with Mr Mahama over the incident, which has sparked nationwide conversations about police accountability.

“The answer is quite straightforward. The Ghana Police Service shouldn’t be investigating itself. That legal principle is well established,” Mr Gyimah said.

He added that the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), as Ghana’s Ombudsman, is best placed to handle the matter.

The meeting between the IGP and Mr Mahama is the latest development since a video emerged earlier this week in which the businessman claimed some police officers had assaulted him during a misunderstanding near the Achimota Forest enclave. The Police Administration earlier indicated that it had launched an internal inquiry into the conduct of the officers involved.

But Mr Gyimah argues that internal investigations lack public confidence, insisting that the case reflects a deeper, long-standing problem within Ghana’s security services.

“This is not significant because a popular person is involved,” he said. “It has simply thrown light on a matter that has persisted for decades. In recent months alone, several abuses have been recorded against citizens and journalists by our own security services.”

He referenced recent viral incidents, including a security guard assaulting a customer inside a bank, another attacking a woman in a pharmacy, and multiple reports of journalists being manhandled, leading the Ghana Journalists Association to issue formal complaints.

According to him, the alleged statement attributed to one of the officers involved in the Mahama incident that they “could kill him and nothing would happen” highlights a systemic issue that requires structural reforms.

Though he acknowledged the statement remains “alleged,” Mr Gyimah said it demonstrates why independent investigation mechanisms are essential.

He pointed to the United Kingdom as an example, where an independent ombudsman investigates police misconduct.