Senior Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil, has criticised the arrest of private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), saying the incident reflects a growing trend of intolerance toward free expression in Ghana.
Reacting on Facebook after Kpebu’s release, Bentil said the lawyer had become “the victim of an administration which has criminalized free speech,” adding that recent arrests linked to public commentary were “patently unconstitutional.”
“Look around, people are being arrested all over for what they say,” Bentil wrote, warning that the pattern undermines democratic norms and the constitutional guarantee of free expression.
His remarks follow Kpebu’s detention on Wednesday for what the OSP described as obstruction during an invitation to address corruption allegations he made against Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng.
Kpebu has since called the detention “needless” and accused the Special Prosecutor of incompetence.
Bentil’s comments add to growing public debate over the OSP’s handling of high-profile cases and perceived tensions between law enforcement powers and civil liberties.
The OSP has not responded to the criticism.
