Doctors vote against MOU with government, continue strike

After an Emergency Delegates Meeting of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), which lasted till the early hours of Tuesday, Dr voted for the continuation of the nationwide strike.

Dr Titus Ibekwe, the Vice-President of NMA confirmed the decision to the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday, saying the doctors rejected the agreement with the government.

The doctors embarked on an indefinite strike on Tuesday, July 1. Ibekwe said that a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) was signed between the government and NMA on Thursday, July 3 but delegates at the meeting rejected it.

“At the end of our emergency delegates meeting which ended at around 4.30a.m. today, the MoU was unanimously voted against by all the delegates from all the states in the federation.

“We, at the executive level, have to carry out this decision; so, the strike continues, ” Ibekwe said.

Dr Jibril Abdullahi, National President, Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), a body under the NMA, told NAN that the association also had an emergency National Executive Council Meeting (NEC) on Monday

Abdullahi confirmed that at the emergency NEC and delegates meeting of NARD and NMA, members were not satisfied with the MoU.

” An MoU was signed with the government with a proviso that it will be presented to the National Executive Council members and delegates at both NARD and NMA meetings for their consideration.

“We are not satisfied with the terms of the MoU, so the strike continues,” Abdullahi said.

The doctors had made a 24-point demand, including the appointment of four deputy chairmen, Medical Advisory Committee for Teaching Hospitals and establishment of three Federal Medical Centres in the country.

Others are the appointment of only medical doctors as chief medical directors, relativity in the health sector, skipping of Grade Level 12 for medical and dental practitioners and reintegration of its members into the IPPIS platform.

The association also demanded increased hazard and specialist allowances, budget for residency training, speedy passage of the Health Bill, appointment of a Surgeon-General of the Federation and universal health coverage, among others. (NAN)