NARD Strike: Doctors challenge Government to stand up to its responsibilities

*Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors reveals that most of the medical doctors in the Federal-owned teaching hospitals have not been paid between 3 and 6 months’ salaries

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

As the Federal Government reportedly threatens to sack the Resident Doctors over their ongoing strike across the country, Dr. Uyilawa Okhuaihesuyi, President of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), has charged the Federal Government to take its responsibilities and pay the salaries of the medical doctors.

Dr. Okhuaihesuyi, who threw this challenge at the concerned authorities while featuring on a Channels Television programme Friday, August 6, 2021, rather lampooned the Federal Government for failing to do its own job, whereas blaming the doctors for embarking on an industrial action.

Dr. Uyilawa Okhuaihesuyi, President of NARD, and Dr. Osagie Ehanire, Honourable Minister for Health   Photo: The Punch

Recall that some of the issues raised by the medical practitioners include the immediate payment of all salaries owed to all house officers, including March salaries (regardless of quota system) before the end of business March 31.

They are also seeking an upward review of the hazard allowance to 50 percent of consolidated basic salaries of all health workers and payment of the outstanding COVID-19 inducement allowance, especially in state-owned-tertiary institutions.

The President of NARD while on the programme said: “You can’t have signed an agreement with everything you have said, and since 2nd of August when the strike commenced you haven’t called us.

“The first thing you’re telling us is that we signed a document we are not honouring it; we need to resume work. They need to stand up to their responsibilities.”

Okhuaihesuyi also stated the Federal Government had mentioned that 46 Resident Doctors had been paid the “Death In Service Insurance’.

But you are aware that we lost 19 members to COVID-19, and up till now no member has been paid, he noted.

“That is not state government; it is Federal Government because we know that most states do not even have health insurance for health workers or our members,” NARD President said.

He insisted that most of the doctors in the Federal-owned teaching hospitals have not been paid “between 3 and 6 months’ salaries”.

ConsumerConnect reports that in spite of the resident doctors’ insistence on continuing the strike, the Federal Government directing them to return work in the hospitals across the country.

Dr. Osagie Ehanire, Honourable Minister for Health, during a media briefing Thursday, August 5 had requested the medical professionals to resume work the following day.

The Minister was quoted to have said that most of the issues the doctors have raised are state affairs.

Ehanire said that seven of 12 matters that were raised by the striking doctors were the responsibility of state governments.

According to him, he expects the resident doctors to resume work Friday, August 6 and take up these issues with the state governments rather than embark on the nationwide strike as they had done.