NMA Excos Suspended and Re-instated as Strike Continues

Contrary to reports by some sections of the media that the on-going  industrial action by the Nigerian Medical Association has been suspended; the truth is that the strike action is still on.

The Dr. Kayode Obembe led National Officers had bowed to serious pressure by government in a meeting which had Dr.Chris Ngige a medical doctor and senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in attendance and decided to suspend the strike. However, this did not go down well with the delegates from the states and other NMA groups especially the National Association of Resident Doctors(NARD) because, the national officers do not have exclusive powers to take such a decision.  This led to a suspension of the national officers and the setting up of a caretaker committee in the Emergency Delegates Meeting(EDM) that took place early hours of today seventh h of August, 2014, after the announcement of the strike suspension.

"If enough quorum had been formed in the EDM, the excos would have been impeached," an insider said, in a chat with Optometry Excellence. "It took series of pleas by the elders in NMA before the national officers were reinstated."

At the moment, due to the detection of Ebola virus in Nigeria, and subsequent death of two victims, NMA has been under serious pressure to suspend the one month old strike.

"Can you imagine what would have been our fate, if the Ebola patient was rushed to a teaching hospital like LUTH; where there are more doctors and other health workers? There, consultants, residents and others would gather to learn as the patient is seen. Of course, there would be many handshakes afterwards. And yet hazard allowance is a paltry 5,000 naira." The insider said. " A nurse has died out of Ebola, even though she had kitted up before meeting the patient... Once a doctor dies, his salary is stopped that month, imagine the fate that his/her family would face."

Increase in hazard allowance of doctors is one of the demands of NMA. Now that doctors are seriously needed to go back to work, amidst the Ebola scourge; would government bulge to NMA's demands? Only time will tell.