The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has set a two-week deadline for the Federal Government to initiate the implementation of pending agreements or face potential industrial discord.
NARD delivered the ultimatum following an Extraordinary National Executive Council meeting via Zoom on Wednesday.
Dr Emeka Orji, NARD’s President, spoke exclusively to The PUNCH, stating, “We are issuing a two-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to meet our demands with effect from today, Wednesday, July 5 to Friday, July 19, 2023.”
Read also: Presidential Tribunal Adjourns INEC’s Defence to July 4: Latest Updates.
Orji expressed concern that none of the demands that prompted the five-day warning strike earlier has been addressed, even after the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding. He emphasized the delay in releasing the circular for one-on-one replacement and the non-payment of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund, which should have been disbursed at the start of the fiscal year in the previous month.
“If the government does not meet our demands at the end of the ultimatum on July 19, industrial harmony cannot be guaranteed, and from the feelers we have, it will no longer be a warning strike; it will definitely be an indefinite strike,” Orji warned.
Resident doctors conducted a five-day warning strike in May to advocate for their demands. Despite signing a Memorandum of Understanding, the government has not adequately addressed the concerns raised by the doctors.
Read also: Chief Magistrate’s Absence Stalls Seun Kuti’s Trial.
The doctors’ demands include an immediate 200% increment in the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure, urgent recruitment of clinical staff in hospitals, withdrawal of the bill mandating medical and dental graduates to provide five-year compulsory services in Nigeria before obtaining full licenses, and infrastructural development in hospitals with at least 15% of the budgetary allocation to health, as stipulated in the 2001 Abuja declaration.
Furthermore, they seek the abolition of bureaucratic barriers to promptly replace doctors and nurses who leave the system, along with the prompt payment of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund based on the agreements from the stakeholders’ meeting on February 15, 2023.
Follow us on Twitter for more news updates.
