Resident Doctors Mark September 30 As Deadline FG Over Outstanding Agreement
The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) on Monday, gave the Federal and State Governments September deadline to implement all pending issues affecting the health sector in the country, while upbraiding governments at all levels over the poor state of health-care delivery, describing the situation as pitiable.
The newly elected President, Dr. John Ugochukwu Onyebueze Addressing a press conference at the end of the 26th Annual General Meeting of the Association in Enugu,stated that the resident doctors were obsessed with the infrastructural condition of the hospitals as well as the penchant of many Chief Medical Directors of Teaching Hospitals to disorganize the structure of the residency programme.
Onyebueze, circumscribed by the General Secretary, Dr. Aneke Emmanuel, Treasurer, Dr. Aloysius Ifedinso Ugwuoke, the Public Relations Officer, Dr. Asinobi Ugoeze as well as the UNTH chapter chairman of NARD at the event.
Dr. Chukwuma Oraegbunam also disclosed that the union “cannot guarantee industrial harmony in the health sector if this persists beyond the payment of September salaries.” While outlining the burning issues to include, improvement of infrastructure, urgent action against poliomyelitis and lassa fever, as well as immediate release and implementation of the report on the Residency Training Programme.
He declared: “Are you talking about the rickety beds in the accident and emergency? We do not even have gloves and emergency tools. We do not have pens to write and make prescriptions. We are saying that this thing must not continue.”
“the federal government should expedite action on the release of the bailout funds for State Tertiary Health Institutions as agreed earlier' 'he added.
“The Federal government should as a matter of urgency ensure the migration of all our members to the IPPIS platform.
“Centres that are not deducting pension contributions from our members should immediately commence, while all centres should ensure full remitance of deducted contributions of our members to the Pension Fund Administrators.
“In line with extant labour laws, we reject in its entirety the ‘no work no pay’ rule as currently being applied by the Federal Ministry of Health.”
While condemning the unjust sacking of doctors, the poor remunerations of resident doctors in State Tertiary Health Institutions (STHIs) with most having to endure many months without salaries, while others have been confined to irregular emoluments of varying percentages even in the present arduous economic conditions.
“Prominent among them are LAUTECH Ogbomosho, LTH Osogbo, NDUTH Okolobiri, ABSUTH Aba, IMSUTH Orlu, KSSH Lokoja, ESUTH Enugu, EKSUTH Ado-Ekiti”, he said, calling on the “erring managements of the above hospitals to immediately and unconditionally reinstate all unjustly sacked doctors.”
He also decried that “our members in FMC Owerri are yet to receive their December 2015 salaries despite several assurances by all parties that it would be paid.”
