SankofaOnline Editorial Desk: January 27, 2026
The annual WASSA celebration is meant to be a moment of joy, reflection, and gratitude, a time when the nation pauses to honor the men and women whose sacrifices keep Ghana standing. This year, Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson used the platform to reaffirm government’s commitment to military welfare and modernization. His words were polished, reassuring, and full of promise.
But outside the parade grounds, far from the speeches, salutes, and ceremonial drums, another reality confronts us. A painful, shameful reality Ghana has refused to confront for decades.
Our veterans, the very men who once marched with pride under the Black Star, now shuffle through our streets with walking sticks, in delapidated wheelchairs and plastic bowls, begging for coins to buy medicine, food, or shelter. Some sit at traffic intersections in tattered uniforms, their medals, some long pawned for survival. Others sleep under kiosks, forgotten by the very Republic they once defended.
So while the Minister’s assurances are welcome, they ring hollow against the backdrop of this national neglect.
A Nation That Celebrates Soldiers but Abandons Veterans Is a Nation in Denial
Dr. Forson spoke eloquently about accommodation, healthcare, training, career progression, and general welfare for active personnel. He highlighted modernization, strategic readiness, and the government’s “economic reset.” These are important pillars of national security.
But Ghana’s moral security is collapsing.
How can we boast of a modernized military when the men who fought in peacekeeping missions, border operations, and internal security crises now live in poverty? How do we celebrate operational readiness when those who once stood ready for Ghana now stand helpless at lorry stations?
Every veteran begging on the street is a national indictment.
Every ex-soldier sleeping rough is a failure of policy.
Every forgotten retiree is a stain on our conscience.
Lip Service Cannot Heal Wounds—Action Can
Successive governments have mastered the art of promising welfare reforms for veterans. Committees are formed, reports are written, and speeches are delivered. Yet the conditions of our retired soldiers remain unchanged.
The Minister mentioned ongoing dialogue with the 1995/96 year group and over-aged retirees. Dialogue is good, but dialogue does not pay hospital bills. Dialogue does not restore dignity. Dialogue does not feed a veteran who has gone two days without a meal. However its a good beggining and we welcome it.
Ghana needs more than conversations. Ghana needs a Veterans Welfare Overhaul, a real, enforceable, transparent system that guarantees:
- Decent pensions that reflect the cost of living
- Accessible healthcare without bureaucratic hurdles
- Housing support for aging veterans
- Psychological and social support for those traumatized by service
- A national database to track and assist vulnerable ex-servicemen
Anything less is another round of lip service.
The Soldiers We Celebrate Today Will Be the Veterans We Neglect Tomorrow
This is the uncomfortable truth no one wants to say aloud.
The young officer receiving applause at WASSA today may be the same man begging at Kaneshie in 20 years if we do not fix the system. The sergeant leading a parade today may be the same man selling handkerchiefs in traffic after retirement.
A nation that fails to protect its protectors is a nation unprepared for its own future.
A Call to Conscience
Ghana owes its veterans more than medals, slogans, and ceremonial speeches. We owe them dignity. We owe them care. We owe them the peace they fought to secure for us.
If the government’s renewed commitment is genuine, then let it begin where the pain is deepest, on the streets where our veterans sit abandoned. Let the promises made at WASSA translate into policies that lift our ex-servicemen from poverty and restore their honor.
Because until Ghana stops the cycle of neglect, no amount of modernization can make our Armed Forces truly whole.
And until we treat our veterans with the dignity they deserve, our national gratitude remains incomplete.
