Barely days into the new year, resident doctors across Nigeria are once again preparing for industrial action.
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) says it will resume total inactivity of clinical services, TICS 2.0, from midnight on January 12. The decision followed an emergency national executive council meeting held on January 2.
The key demands include the reinstatement of five doctors at the Federal Teaching Hospital in Lokoja, payment of outstanding promotion and salary arrears, and full implementation of professional and specialist allowances. NARD says the strike will only be suspended after full implementation of its demands.
In a statement signed by its President Muhammed Suleiman Usman, President of NARD blamed the federal government’s failure to resolve longstanding welfare and professional issues. The association has directed its 91 centres nationwide to hold congress meetings and media engagements ahead of the strike.
With hospitals already under pressure, the planned strike raises fresh concern about access to health care across the country as Nigerians await the federal government response in the days ahead.
Chris Onyeka, Assistant National Secretary, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) focused on the value of labor, the sensitivity of the health sector, and the physical/mental state of doctors.
“We must understand that these governments in Nigeria, do not place premium on work. If you believe that work creates wealth, work performed by workers is the linchpin for wealth creation, then you must treat your workers very well, especially those who work in sensitive areas, like in the health sector”.
“If we are a nation of responsible people, responsible leaders, responsible governments, we must place premium on the services that these ones render, and we must pay them well.
According to Usman, “It is rather unfortunate that now the conversation is descending towards what preparations have you made to cater for patients that would not be able to access your services during this strike. Now, the system is accustomed to not just the empathy from doctors, but sympathy and even pity, which is why the system demands at all times… render those services. That is why the system has come to demand of doctors. And rightly so. There are moral reasons, there are ethical challenges, there may even be legal challenges here. But I still tell Nigerians, and I still tell whoever cares to listen, that a hungry, exhausted doctor is a dangerous doctor.”
On political timing, he addressed the perception of the strike in relation to the election cycle and called for government engagement.
“It would be unfair to this workers’ organisation as the case be, for example, the Nigerian Medical Association, it would be unfair to tie their agitation of a proposed strike to election cycle. I don’t want to agree with that proposition.
What we should do is for us to engage with them, let government engage with them, listen to them, what are their grievances, what are the areas of concern, what are the things they are clamoring for. So don’t let us tie this agitation… I don’t believe so. Because Nigerian Medical Association comprises of men and women of integrity. I want to believe that they have genuine cause before they gave that notice of intention to embark on strike.”
