A senior officer of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has recounted how her retired father was required to offer a “brown envelope” before being able to receive his pension benefits.
According to the GNFS Officer, his retired father was forced to pay a bribe to receive his pension benefits.
She detailed that her father made a vow as a committed Christian, never to engage in bribery, but the circumstances surrounding his father receiving his pension forced him to.
Speaking at a National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) dialogue, she highlighted the incident, noting the extensive rot in the Ghanaian society and its implications on citizens.
In a video shared on X, the GNFS officer stated, “My father promised himself, as a strong Christian, never to pay a bribe. He ran from Ho to Accra for more than a year. Then, one time when I called him, I said, ‘Papa, I need money.’ He said, ‘My daughter, my retirement money has not been given to me.’ Then I consulted an elderly man, and he said, ‘Tell your father to do an envelope.’
Whenever my father got to the office, the woman would tell him they could not find his file. But on the very day my father paid that bribe, the file was brought out. So, this tells all of us that our systems are not working”, she recounted.
Some Ghanaians reacting to the GNFS officer’s remarks stated, “Good, she is saying something. One problem we have as a country is that when we experience extortion at government offices, we hardly call the people there out. If we consistently call people out over these things, people will sit up”.
A netizen added, “A driver made a wrongful u-turn around kotobabi but Kotobabi dispatch duty officer took his key and sent him to Kotobabi police station and took GHC 500.00 before releasing his car”.
One more Ghanaian added, “Ei, this one is sad. A man serves Ghana finish, retire, and before he gets his own pension, he has to give a “brown envelope”. That tells you how bad the system has become.
If this can happen to the father of a senior officer in the Ghana National Fire Service, then the ordinary Ghanaian doesn’t stand a chance. This thing is not right at all”.
A netizen added, “I haven’t been upgraded since 2022 simply because of this issue. The HR and IPPP coordinator are all bent on an equal share of my arrears agreement before they work on it”.
“But why did they hold her hand and hand her to the CFO? She got employed through “whom u know”. Wasn’t that corruption? Corruption has just changed phases”, one more netizen added.
Additionally, one more X user added, I love Ghan, but take it from me, even to get your pay processed as a teacher or Nurse by the IPP man at your district directorate, you must pay a bribe.
We all see the rot, but the truth is, if you don’t pay, you will suffer more than those who pay”.
One more X user added, “When a retired man has to hand over a ‘brown envelope’ just to access the pension he worked his whole life for, we know our society is in crisis. It’s a reflection of a widespread culture of corruption. We need more than just talk, we need a government that will hold these sectors accountable and root out the greed that makes people exploit their fellow citizens”.
Watch the video below:
A senior officer of the Ghana National Fire Service has recounted how her retired father was required to offer a “brown envelope” before being able to receive his pension benefits.
— SIKAOFFICIAL🦍 (@SIKAOFFICIAL1) February 26, 2026
She highlighted the incident, noting the extensive rot in the Ghanaian society and its… pic.twitter.com/bCLp2e9gLp