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The Nasarawa State chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has begun a five-day warning strike after the expiration of the three weeks ultimatum issued to the state government.
On June 13, they issued a three weeks ultimatum over welfare issues concerning their members.
Peter Attah, NMA chairman in the state, disclosed this while briefing reporters on Wednesday in Lafia.
According to the NMA chairman, the decision to embark on the strike was taken at an emergency meeting of the association on Tuesday.
The chairman said he explained to the congress a previous meeting with the delegation of the government led by Emmanuel Akabe, the deputy governor, on two occasions, but no serious commitment allegedly came from the government.
He added that after hearing the updates, the congress unanimously agreed that members should withdraw their services in all the state government-owned facilities from 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 5, to 8:00 a.m. on Monday, July 10.
“If by Monday, July 10, the government still refuses to meet our demands, we will call for a congress meeting and decide on the next line of action,” Mr Attah added.
The NMA chairman further said that because the association has the interest of the health sector at heart, it decided to allow doctors with Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Keffi, to continue to render services for now.
“But if the government refuses to resolve the lingering issues by Monday, we may be forced to ask our FMC and private facilities colleagues to join the strike,” he said.
He listed some of their demands as non-implementation of promotions for doctors and annual salary increments for over nine years, non-implementation of N30,000 minimum wage and consequential adjustments.
Others are non-implementation of the reviewed hazard allowance circular and the accrued 19 months arrears, high burden of taxation, inadequate manpower and overworking.
He said 25 doctors employed in 2014 at Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital (DASH), Lafia, and the State Hospital Management Board had not been promoted for nine years.
Mr Attah revealed further that 88 medical doctors left the service of the state in 2023 alone due to a poor welfare package.
He explained that the 19 general hospitals in the state have only 33 doctors, which he described as grossly inadequate by any standard.
(NAN).
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