The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has directed its members to resume work on Monday following a seven-day nationwide warning strike.
The strike was to demand the rescue of Dr. Ganiyat Popoola, who was kidnapped eight months ago.
NARD, however, said it will review the federal government’s commitment to resolving its demand in the next three weeks.
The decision to call off the strike is coming after the federal government’s pronouncement on Thursday that it will institute a ‘no work no pay’ policy against the striking doctors.
A former NARD president, Uyi Lawal, described the policy as insensitive.
Dr. Uyi told Nigeria Info in Port Harcourt that the government's disposition toward its citizens is the reason a lot of people, including doctors, are leaving the country.
“This shows their insensitivity to the bone of context. A human being has been in the kidnappers' den for 8 months. What else are you going to threaten us with?” he asked.
“And this is the reason most people are leaving the country; because you cannot first feed yourself, take care of your security, take care of your loved ones, and we are made to sacrifice so much, and the people we are sacrificing for are busy wasting the resources of the country.”
Dr. Lawal said the government needs to pay attention to the security of its citizens, complaining the number of doctor kidnappings is alarming.
“Doctors have become prey to these kidnappers that have made the country ungovernable.
“You tend to ask yourself why would you want to sacrifice all you have done for the country when the least of it all – security – is not taken into consideration.”
Early on Monday, some relatives of patients at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) said the recent warning strike by the NARD in response to the kidnapping of Dr. Ganiyat Popoola affected the treatment of their hospitalized loved ones.
They, however, said other healthcare professionals filled in for the doctors.
“Thank God there are other professionals taking care of the patients. If not, the patients would have been battling immense pains, and lives would have been lost,” one of the relatives said.
Some Port Harcourt residents expressed mixed feelings over the resident doctors' demand for the release of Dr. Popoola, who has been held captive for eight months.
However, they all agree that the federal government’s ‘no work no pay’ policy towards the striking resident doctors is misplaced.
One of the respondents identified as Henshaw said the doctors are right to go on strike.
“The reason being that everybody is important in the system. The main thing is for the federal government to address the issue on the ground, which is insecurity, and not threaten the doctors with punitive measures.”
