Unemployed Graduates with Disabilities Demand High-Level Government Engagement Following Jubilee House Protest

The Coalition of Unemployed Graduates with Disabilities staged a significant protest on August 19, 2026, at Jubilee House to demand immediate government action on the persistent unemployment facing their members. The group is advocating for the enforcement of the five percent employment quota for persons with disabilities (PWDs) and is seeking direct dialogue with senior administration officials. The protest highlights growing frustration over the lack of inclusion in the public sector, with the Coalition insisting that only high-ranking leadership can provide the necessary financial clearance and policy directives to resolve their grievances.

The demonstration took a tense turn when the protesters refused to hand over their petition to Dr. Samuel Ayeh, a Presidential Staffer and aide to President John Mahama. Despite Dr. Ayeh presenting himself as a senior representative of the executive, the Coalition, led by Convener Gilbert Boateng, declined to submit the document, requesting instead to meet with the Chief of Staff, the Vice President, or President Mahama himself. Mr. Boateng emphasized that while the decision was not meant to be disrespectful to Dr. Ayeh, the group felt that previous petitions to lower-level staffers had failed to yield results. Following a denial of entry to the Jubilee House grounds, the group continued their picket at the nearby Christ the King Church.

Central to the Coalition's grievances is the perceived failure of state institutions to uphold recruitment standards for PWDs. The group cited a recent recruitment exercise by the Ghana Education Service (GES) as a primary example of this failure; despite the Coalition providing a list of 200 qualified graduates, not a single person with a disability was hired. The protesters are calling for the Ministry of Finance to grant specific financial clearance for the recruitment of PWDs to ensure they do not have to compete on an uneven playing field with able-bodied applicants, who they say are often prioritized in general hiring rounds.

Responding to the group's refusal to engage with him, Dr. Samuel Ayeh stated that he respected the Coalition's decision but maintained that he was authorized to represent the President. He suggested that the group could wait until they found an official they deemed suitable to receive the petition, while also conveying the President's best wishes. However, the Coalition remains firm in its stance, arguing that direct engagement with the nation's top decision-makers is the only way to secure the dedicated job opportunities and systemic changes required to end the marginalization of graduates with disabilities in Ghana's workforce.