Nigerian Striking Resident Doctors Suspend Planned Nationwide Protests

The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors has suspended its planned nationwide protest after a closed-door meeting with principal officers of the senate.

The government on Tuesday pleaded with the striking resident doctors to shelve their planned nationwide protest and stop the ongoing strike for the sake of Nigerians dying in the hospitals across the country.
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Daju Kachallom, who has been negotiating with the doctors on behalf of government made the appeal in Abuja when she addressed journalists at the ministry’s headquarters.

Daju begged the NARD members not to allow more Nigerians to die due to their absence in hospitals.
However, the President of NARD, Emeka Orji, told The PUNCH it has suspended the planned nationwide protest, noting that there will be a review in the next 72 hours.

“We met with the Senate president, majority and minority leaders and Whip. So, the planned protest slated for Wednesday has been suspended and we will review it again in 72 hours,” he said.
The striking doctors had planned to commence daily peaceful protests, starting from Wednesday, if the government fails to meet its demands.

The decision followed the directive by the government to Chief Medical Directors and Medical Directors of federal tertiary hospitals to commence the enforcement of the “no work, no pay” policy against the striking doctors.
The doctors embarked on an indefinite industrial action on July 26, following the failure of the government to meet their demands.

The doctors are demanding the implementation of the one-for-one replacement policy for healthcare workers; the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria to discontinue the downgrading of the membership certificate issued by the West African Postgraduate Medical and Surgical Colleges; the immediate payment of all salary arrears; the implementation of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure; a new hazard allowance; and the domestication of the Medical Residency Training Act; among others.