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| Kayode Odembe, NMA President |
Kayode Obembe, president Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) says the association has called off its three-month old strike action.
Obembe confirmed to journalists that the delegates decided to suspend the industrial action because of the outbreak of the deadly Ebola Virus Disease. He asked members to resume normal work on 25 August.
Obembe explained that the suspension was the outcome of the emergency delegates meeting held on Saturday 23 August Abuja.
“Delegates resolved to suspend the strike in the interest of urgent national emergencies while negotiations continue.
“Consequently, all medical and dental doctors are hereby directed to resume duty at their working posts with effect from 8:00hours of Monday.
“The NMA enjoins all her members to remain calm while negotiations continue,” he said.
Obembe said the association demands were centered on improvement of the structure and tradition of the profession which had to deal with clinical governance and redress of injustice.
He said a circular had been issued that only doctors whose degrees were registered with the Nigeria Medical Council would be given the title consultants.
“Also the post of Deputy Chairman, Medical Advisory Committee had been reinstated.
“The government has attended to us that there is no effort to repel or redress the decree establishing the position of Chief Medical Directors.
“In the areas of injustice, we have been able to extract from the government that the relativities which we have been mentioning, there is far commitment now that the arrears of relativities will be paid, they have started paying,” he said.
According to Obembe, delegates also demanded immediate withdrawal of the government circular suspending residency training programme and sack of more than 16,000 resident doctors, who constitute about 70 per cent of doctors’ workforce.
He said delegates commended the efforts of the Federal Government and Lagos State Government in containing the spread of Ebola Virus Disease.
The President reiterated the association continued commitment to catering for the health of Nigerians, saying it look forward to improving and sustaining cordial relationship with the Federal Ministry of Health.
Obembe expressed the association’s gratitude to all Nigerians for their interventions to resolve the strike.
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