RESIDENT DOCTORS’ DEMANDS ABSURD – NGIGE
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The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, has branded the demands by medical doctors under the aegis of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) as “absurd”, insisting they are suffering from “entitlement syndrome”
NARD, in an ultimatum issued on Saturday, demanded immidiate action on the “upward review” of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) and payment of all salary arrears owed its members from 2015.
The Association, amongst other issues, also demanded the immediate payment of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF) and threatened to embark on an indefinite strike within two weeks if their demands were unmet.
They condemned the controversial bill seeking to compel medical and dental practitioners to practise for five years before relocating abroad, noting that such would rather escalate the challenge of brain drain in the health sector.
Ngige, however, criticised the doctor for issuing the ultimatum while speaking on Arise TV programme, “the morning show” on Monday while also maintaining that the federal government had taken significant measures “to give them everything they want.”
“We have been managing their matter and have given them everything they want, including the residency training programme funds, we are paying them, even when in training, we pay them a full salary, pay them all the allowances and you decided that we have not done enough,” he said.
“As I said before, you have the option to go. It is left for the education and health ministries to fashion out what they can do.”
On the new bill, Mr Ngige said “So you asked that a bill submitted by a member be removed as a condition not to commence strike? That is absurd,” he added.
“The entitlements syndrome, the sense of entitlement is too much in this country and as I said earlier, you obey the law you look odd, you apply the law, you look odd or you are a wicked man. I don’t have any apologies for whatever I have done in the management of trade disputes,” the minister said.
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