The leadership of
the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) met on Wednesday and vowed
to continue their nationwide strike until the federal government meets all
their demands.
One week after the industrial action began, it has grounded activities in hospitals across
the country but the resident doctors say, “a luta continua; vitória é certa“,
which means, “the struggle continues; victory is certain”.
So, what is the bone of contention?
The communique issued after their meeting listed all the ten demands that prompted the strike and reappraised the federal government’s response for each of them.
Here is the full list of the demands as shared in the
communique issued by Uyilawa Okhuaihesuyi, NARD president (pictured above):
1. Immediate Payment of all salaries owed to all house
officers including march salaries (regardless of quota system) before the end
of business on the 31st of March 2021.
As of today, although payment has been made to some of
them, the payment is marred with so many irregularities. Most of them are still
not paid.
2. Immediate payment of all salary arrears including
march salaries for our members in all federal (GIFMIS platform) and state
tertiary health institutions across the country.
None of these Doctors who have worked for over four
months has been paid. Our members in states like ABSUTH, IMSUTH and UNIMEDTH
are still been owed twenty, five and four months salaries respectively.
3. Upward review of the current hazard allowance to 50%
of consolidated basic salaries of all health workers and payment of the
outstanding COVID-19 inducement allowance.
The hazard allowances have remained five thousand naira
(5000) for over thirty (30) years. For the Honourable Minister of Labour &
Employment (HMOL&E) to feign ignorance of this on national television today
leaves a lot to be desired. This is an all-time low coming from someone who has
been in the Nigeria senate where monthly hardship allowance for senators is
N1,242,122.70. Demanding for 5 weeks for its review despite the ongoing
strike is really shameful. A sincere government should immediately call all
stakeholders together to address this issue once and for all.
4. Payment of death in service insurance for all health
workers who died as a result of COVID-19 infection or other infectious diseases
in the country.
This legitimate demand has been left unattended to.
5. Payment of Salary shortfalls of 2014, 2015 and 2016 to
our members in all federal institutions including state-owned institutions as
earlier agreed with NARD.
Nothing has been done in this regard.
6. Universal domestication/implementation of the 2017
MRTA by all federal government and state-owned training institutions to ensure
proper funding of residency training in the country as stipulated by the Act.
Nothing has been done about this especially by the state
governments.
7. Abolishment of the exorbitant bench fees being paid by
our members on outside postings in all training institutions across the country
with immediate effect.
The only positive result from the conciliatory meeting
with the HMoLE, however no circular yet to back the abolishment.
8. Immediate payment of 2019, the balance of 2020 and
2021 medical residency training funds (MRTF) to our members including those
under state government employ.
Despite our constant engagement with the FMOH on this
issue, it was shocking to us that it took the conciliatory meeting by the HMoLE
for the FMOH to be instructed to go and check if funding for residency training
was captured in the 2021 budget. This is pitiful as well as awful.
9. Immediate review of the Act regulating Postgraduate
Medical Training in Nigeria in line with international best practices to remove
the unnecessary rigors in residency training in Nigeria, one of the factors
attributed to brain drain in the health sector.
Nothing also has been done here.
10. The reintroduction of medical super salary structure
and specialist allowance for all Doctors as already approved for some other
health workers.
No mention was made about this very germane demand of our
members.
This further buttresses the insincerity amongst
government officials which has stalled meaningful negotiations in the wake of
the current impasse.
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