Doctors’ strike imminent nationwide… if
on MAY 12, 2012 · in NEWS
4:06 am
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By Sola Ogundipe, Chioma Obinna & Gabriel Olawale
A nation-wide doctors strike maybe imminent following the initiated dialogue between the Lagos State Government and the national body of the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, which ended deadlocked yesterday even as the Lagos State Government has been challenged to publish names of the 373 doctors it claims to have recruited.

At the 4- hour meeting which had in attendance, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, Permanent Secretary, Dr. Femi Olugbile, Other officials of the Lagos State Government including the State Head of Service, HOS, could not resolve the fixation position of the HOS that the Lagos Government had resolved to disciplined its doctors and that the matter was beyond him.

To this end, the NMA national body is planning to convey an Emergency delegates Meeting to review the current situation and take a national position which findings by Saturday Vanguard revealed may result to a nation- wide doctors’ strike.

Addressing a press conference in Lagos on the outcome of the meeting, the newly elected National President of the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, Dr. Osahon Enabulele appealed to the Lagos State Government to quickly get back to the negotiation table and explore the windows of opportunity presented to them by the NMA.

Enabulele also urged the State Government to immediately reverse the sack orders of the doctors, retrieve the mass queries and to open themselves up for sincere and genuine dialogue towards redressing the issues at stake.

The NMA National president was in Lagos to seek a mediated settlement of all the issues in dispute between the parties.

Enabulele who frowned at the attitude of some of the officials during the meeting hinted that the national body in collaboration are exploring all options to resolve the crisis.

His words, “Lagos State Government should honestly take responsibility for all that had happened because what has generated the crisis is its inability to keep faithfully to the agreement.

“So, as expected in a democracy, it should be honourable enough to implement what they agreed to implement. Once they do that, nobody will have any cause to agitate. Everybody will work together as brothers and sisters and that essentially is the message.”

Speaking on the claims of the Lagos Government that it had recruited 373 new doctors, he challenged the state government to publish the names of the newly recruited doctors.

“If the government is sincere, it should publish the names of the newly recruited doctors.”

On the purported eviction of the doctors, Enabulele said it is totally rejected by the NMA. He said, “The eviction is not in order. It even violates the tenancy laws of the Lagos State .

It traumatises the sacredness of the human entity. So, it is totally rejected. It is totally unacceptable and the NMA believes that there are better ways of addressing the needs and the expectations of the workforce.”