Ngige Blasts Medical Doctors As Strike Paralyses Public Hospitals Nationwide

Medical services were on Wednesday paralysed in government hospitals across the country as the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors, NARD began its five-day warning strike.

Our correspondents, who monitored the strike in different states on Wednesday, observed that hospitals were offering only skeletal services to cushion the effect of the strike.

This was even as hospital officials say the medical and dental consultants, nurses, and other health workers who are not involved in the strike were overwhelmed.

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The hospital officials also said some patients were discharged to seek health care in private health facilities.

Members of NARD, which has about 12,000 members, had on Monday threatened to proceed on a five-day warning strike from May 17 to May 18 to press for salary increase, among others.

The resident doctors are demanding an immediate increment in the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure to the tune of 200 per cent of the current gross salaries of doctors.

They also want immediate massive recruitment of clinical staff in the hospitals, and immediate withdrawal of the bill seeking to compel medical and dental graduates to render five-year compulsory services in Nigeria before being granted full licences to practise.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government said it was working towards resolving the demands of the doctors.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, while speaking on Channels Television on Wednesday, has faulted the strike by NARD, saying talks were ongoing between the ministry and the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission towards NARD’s demands.

Ngige said it was “incongruous for students doctors to embark on strike when consultants training them were already negotiating with the Federal Government.”

“The resident doctors are part of NMA. They are young doctors in training. So, if NMA is negotiating on their behalf as the parent body, what these young people (resident doctors) are doing is disrespecting the NMA.

“They are crying wolf when there is none,” Ngige said.

The strike took a toll on medical services across the country.

In Lagos, the President of the Association of Resident Doctors, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Dr Kemi Abiloye, said, “Today, we made sure none of our doctors went to work, the government knows our agitation and as soon as they are able to call us to the negotiation table and begin to solve our demands, we can then agree with them.”