The Ghana Boxing Interim Management Committee (GBIMC) has condemned former boxer Michael Nii Ayitey Okai, widely known as Ayitey Powers, over an alleged death threat against National Sports Authority (NSA) Director-General Yaw Ampofo Ankrah.
The committee has called on the Ghana Police Service to arrest and prosecute Ayitey Powers if its investigation establishes that an offence has been committed.
Its demand follows reports that police were seeking the former boxer in connection with comments allegedly made on social media. The dispute has added to tensions between Ghana’s boxing stakeholders and the NSA at a time when the sport is undergoing an institutional restructuring process.
In a statement dated 20 August, the GBIMC described the alleged threat as both unacceptable and criminal. It said no public official should be subjected to intimidation or threats, regardless of disagreements over the administration of boxing.
The committee also accused Ayitey Powers of a wider pattern of online verbal abuse. It alleged that he had previously directed insults at GBIMC chairman Samir Captan and vice-chairman Professor Azumah Nelson.
The GBIMC said it was operating within its responsibility to restructure and regulate boxing in Ghana. It urged the Police Service to conduct a full investigation and bring charges where the evidence justified prosecution.
“We are requesting the Ghana Police Service as a matter of urgency to investigate and appropriately prosecute Michael Nii Ayitey Okai,” the statement said.
Alongside the potential police case, the committee has begun disciplinary proceedings against Ayitey Powers. That decision means the former boxer could face consequences within Ghanaian boxing in addition to any action resulting from the criminal investigation.
The GBIMC warned that the sport could not be allowed to operate under what it described as intimidation, thuggery or impunity. It appealed to boxing officials, participants and supporters to help re-establish discipline, respect and honour within the sport.
The latest dispute is linked to a broader disagreement between boxing stakeholders and the NSA over how the sport is administered and regulated. That wider background has made the allegations particularly sensitive, with the GBIMC seeking to establish a new regulatory structure for Ghanaian boxing.
Ayitey Powers is also the promoter of Ayitey Powers Promotions. He was forced to cancel a scheduled fight show at short notice after the NSA imposed a temporary suspension on boxing in September last year.
The former boxer says the NSA director-general promised to compensate him for investments made towards the cancelled event. In recent months, he has repeatedly used social media to demand justice from the NSA and Yaw Ampofo Ankrah.
The GBIMC’s statement places those public demands alongside the alleged death threat and signals that the committee intends to take action over conduct it considers to have crossed the line from criticism into criminal intimidation.
