Resident Doctors Shelve Strike for One Week, to Allow House Intervention

• Gunmen kill acting registrar of medical council of Nigeria

Damilola Oyedele in Abuja

The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has agreed to suspend its proposed indefinite strike by one week to allow the leadership of the House of Representatives intervene in the issues between them and the executive.

This was after a meeting with Speaker Yakubu Dogara wednesday.

According to a statement by the Speaker’s spokesperson, Mr. Turaki Hassan, Dogara committed himself and relevant House Committee Chairmen to meet with the Minister of Health on the matter.

“It doesn’t matter what faith you profess, for instance, it is clearly stated in the Holy Bible that a labourer should be paid his wages even before his sweat dries. I believe that as a responsible government we know this. It is not like we don’t know. But as to matters, challenges facing you, these are not things that we had discussed before, I only heard through the briefings I was given.

“If it is possible for you to open this window for us in the immediate to call on relevant persons who are in charge of this, in conjunction, of course, with active participation of your good self, the relevant committees of the House, so we can sit at a table like this.

“What is the problem? And then we will attempt to address these issues together and if doesn’t work, we can’t stop you from venting your anger and and expressing your grievances,” he said.

“Imagine a situation where all the resident doctors in Nigeria are on strike, what will happen to the people we represent?….Democracy’s first promise is life, thereafter liberty, the third promise is the pursuit of happiness. And all of them rest on each other, if you don’t have life, then you cannot begin to talk of liberty, if you don’t have liberty then you cannot begin to talk about happiness. So ultimately, all the three hang on life. When there is no life, there is nothing, democracy is useless because a dead man doesn’t have liberty,” Dogara added.

The National Liaison officer of NARD, Dr. Paul Ugwu, however told THISDAY that it is the national strike that is being suspended by one week, pending the outcome of the negations with the Speaker and other government officials.
Some centres would therefore embark on the strike starting from today, he added.

The absence of the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, and other ministry officials may have complicated the strike.
Meanwhile, the acting Registrar, Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN), Olufunke Omotuyi, was yesterday murdered by suspected gunmen in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that the incident took place at about 4 a.m. at her Apo residence in Abuja.
The late Mrs. Omotuyi was reported to be in her office till 8p.m. on Tuesday. She was due for retirement from public service in July.

Details of how the attack were sketchy.
When contacted, the police spokesman of the FCT Command, Anjuguri Manzah, said he was yet be briefed on the incident.