Nigerian medical practitioners to embark on a 3 days warning strike

The Nigerian medical practitioners of Kaduna state based health workers  are to embark of on a three days warning strike on 16 November  2009, as the result of the failure of the state government to meet up with the demand of  the health workers.

During the past three years, the various health professionals in Kaduna state have presented series of demands to the state Government for the harmonization of condition of services and retention of health workers within the state and Local Government employments.

According to the health professionals, the health sector in Kaduna state suffers a great deal from infrastructure decay, lake of maintenance and upgrade of health equipments and poor salary scale and they could no longer continue to work without a better salary scale as Kaduna state is among the lowest paying state in Nigeria.

While hoping for better days the Kaduna state medical practitioners receives the greatest shocks of their lives, as Kaduna state government employs foreign medical practitioners in the state, stating that they have no doctor or qualified medical practitioners in the state.

Speaking with the Secretary of Kaduna State Health Workers Consultative Forum T. N. Yajubu whom made it known that they could cope with the poor salary scale, infrastructure decay and other shortcoming in the health sector but the state government employing foreign health practitioners and paying them better than the home health workers is what they will not tolerate.

“The State Government has failed to respond positively to the plight of the state health workers, instead of standing up to the challenge and find a lasting solution to the problems facing the health sector. Rather the government went her way to employ foreign health practitioners and placed them on a salary scale of 300% which is above which is above what the state health workers have being demanding for years.”

The health workers made it known that there were never a time Kaduna state health practitioners demand for 200% salary scale left alone 300% which is been paid to the foreign doctors.

Stressing further Yajubu said”the Kaduna state government has proven that they have to interest in the health sector of Kaduna state  neither do they care about the health workers as they have left us to our fate.”

In an interview with the State Chairlady of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, Kaduna state chapter Comrade Cecilia Musa who expressed bitterness over the development said that they would not stand the humiliation and discrimination by the Kaduna state government.

“Earlier, the Kaduna state health workers have approached the Kaduna state government concerning the welfare and the lack of equipment in the state, what we saw next was foreign practitioners whom are being placed on 300% salary scale, which we the home workers cannot accept.”

Comrade Cecilia made it known that a lot of health workers have left Kaduna state to the neighboring state due to the poor salary scale in Kaduna state and all the government could do is to get foreign health workers to replace them.

“Kaduna state is running shortage of health wealth workers due to the migration of health workers to the neighboring states in search of better salary scale, for the past three years the health workers have presented series of demand to the state government. When the government realizes that they are short of health workers all they could do is to go their way in employing foreign health workers to replace them.”

To bury the bury the hatchet, the Honorable Commissioner of Information and Home Affairs, Commissioner Sa’idu Adamu said that Kaduna state government did not ignore the health workers or humiliated them in any way.

“Kaduna state government could not increase the salary scale of the health workers due to the economic meltdown in the state as Kaduna state has no revenue to pay them and if we increase the salary where will we get the money to pay them. Also by the time, the proposal of the health workers reached the Head of Service it was late as Kaduna state government has already submitted the budget for 2010 to the National Assembly and we cannot make provision of what is not included in the budget, we simply asked them to wait until next year.”

While addressing the issue of the employment of the foreign medical practitioners, the Commissioner made it known that Kaduna state government did not employ any foreign medical practitioner.

“Kaduna state government never employed any foreign medical practitioners, when the present administration came into power Health is one of the 11 Point Agenda by Mr. Governor and when we looked round the state we realized that there are no professional medical practitioners in the state. The state began to send various health workers abroad for training, retraining, and so far, more than 100 health workers have been sent out off the country.”

While speaking further, the Commissioner he stated that the state government only looked for help from foreign countries to help out in the state.”  Due to the lack of medical practitioner in the state, the state government decided to invite health professional whom are on exchange program to come and help the state while those sent out for training returns. It is a temporally thing and Kaduna state Government did not employ them, they are only on exchange program.”

To this end, the Kaduna state health workers are to embark on a three days warning strike from Monday 16th to Wednesday 18th November, 2009 following the expiration of the 21 days ultimatum on 30th October, 2009. While people vacate the Government Hospital to private hospital and those whom cannot afford the cost of private hospital are left to their fate.