The Northern Regional executives of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) are demanding an independent investigation into the death of teacher Abu Seidu following an encounter with police personnel at Gindabour in the Savannah Region.
The union says the circumstances surrounding Mr Seidu’s death remain unclear and require an impartial probe capable of establishing what happened from the time he came into contact with the police until his death.
Mr Seidu, a professional teacher at Gindabour D/A Primary School in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District, died on Wednesday, September 16, 2026.
In a statement issued on September 24, the Northern Regional GNAT executives argued that the Ghana Police Service should not lead an investigation into an incident involving its own personnel.
“This is precisely why GNAT demands an independent investigation. The Police Service cannot be allowed to be the sole investigator of an incident in which its own personnel are alleged to have been directly involved,” the union said.
GNAT said any death occurring after an encounter between a citizen and law-enforcement officers must be investigated in a manner that is “independent, impartial, transparent and credible enough to command public confidence.”
The call follows conflicting accounts of what led to Mr Seidu’s death.
According to the Police Service, officers on patrol encountered a motorbike rider who, upon seeing the police vehicle, diverted into the bush. The officers later found him unconscious and attempted to transport him to a hospital, but he died on the way.
However, accounts from the community have raised questions about events between the initial police encounter and the teacher’s death.
The bodies of Mr Seidu and General Constable Redeemer Owusu, who was later killed in a mob attack, were subsequently taken for preservation and autopsy.
GNAT is calling for the autopsy findings on Mr Seidu to be incorporated into the independent investigation and for the outcome to be communicated transparently to his family and the public, subject to the law.
The union is also demanding a separate investigation into the death of Constable Owusu, while condemning mob justice, vigilantism and the unlawful killing of any person.
“Justice for Abu Seidu must not be pursued at the expense of justice for Redeemer Owusu, and justice for Redeemer Owusu must not be pursued at the expense of justice for Abu Seidu,” GNAT said.
The association has further called for an independent inquiry into allegations of vandalism, destruction of property, assault and intimidation during subsequent security operations in Gindabour.
It said any wrongdoing established through such an inquiry must attract accountability, stressing that restoring order should not result in the punishment of an entire community.
“Collective punishment has no place in a constitutional democracy,” the union said.
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Read the full statement below:
