Doctors plan picketing tertiary health institutions over poor welfare
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Resident doctors in public hospitals plan to picket from tomorrow federal tertiary health institutions nationwide in escalation of their strike which began on July 26 over inadequate pay and poor equipment.
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) said the picket will target the Federal Ministry of Health, the Office of the Head of the Federal Civil Service, as well as all federal and state tertiary health institutions.
The decision was taken at a NARD National Executive Council (NEC), according to a statement jointly signed by NARD National President Emeka Orji and Secretary Chikezie Kelechi.
“This has become imperative to force home our requests, which have been largely ignored by our parent ministry and the federal government,” the statement said.
“We are pained that rather than make genuine and concerted efforts to resolve the challenges that led to the industrial action despite repeated ultimatums, our parent ministry and the federal government have chosen to demonise Nigerian resident doctors instead, after all, their sacrifices and patriotism.”
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Decay in public health sector
“We, therefore, resolved that it is time the whole world hears our side of the story – the decay and corruption in the health sector as well as the neglect the public health institutions have suffered all these years that led to repeated industrial actions,” the statement added, per Vanguard.
“We believe that the government still has time to genuinely address the issues at stake before Wednesday, 9th August 2023, or leave us with no other option.”
Tinubu receives industrial action baptism from doctors today
The NARD began the strike on July 26 over poor pay and near impossible working conditions that have driven medical personnel to emigrate in droves.
Orji disclosed the decision to embark on strike was taken at the NARD National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Lagos in July.
The doctors are demanding, among others
- Implementation of the one-for-one replacement policy for healthcare workers
- The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) to stop downgrading membership certificate issued by the West African Postgraduate Medical and Surgical Colleges
- Immediate payment of all salary arrears
- Implementation of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure
- A new hazard allowance
- Domestication of the Medical Residency Training Act
Doctors dying from overwork
“Our members are saying that we have been on this since January on the same issues, and they are not going to continue to wait,” Orji said.
“The very important part of our demands is one-for-one replacement, and doctors are still leaving and the ones remaining are being overworked.
“Last week, a doctor died in Bayelsa State. Doctors are dying from being overworked, and we have been on this for a long time.
“When we met on Friday, everybody was calling for a strike, and I just had to plead with them because the Secretary to the Government, George Akume, intervened, but up till today, we cannot reach them again, and nobody wants to hear about any intervention by the government again.”
