Doctors in Nigeria’s Ondo State have warned that they will go on strike if the state government does not increase their hazard allowance, which is currently only N5,000 ($12) per month. The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in Ondo State said that the federal government had already reviewed the hazard allowance for health workers upwards, but the state government had not implemented it.
The NMA chairman in Ondo State, Dr Omosehin Adeyemi-Osowe, said that the doctors were promised that a circular would be issued by Tuesday to effect the change, but they were still waiting.
He said that the low hazard allowance was one of the challenges facing the doctors in Ondo State, along with inadequate personnel and poor welfare. He also confirmed that many doctors had left the state for better opportunities elsewhere, a phenomenon known as ‘japa’ in Nigeria. The NMA president, Dr Uche Ojinmah, who spoke through Adeyemi-Osowe, expressed displeasure at the recent media trial of some health workers by the Minister of Women Affairs.
He said that anyone who had a case against a doctor should follow due process and report to the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, rather than tarnishing their reputation in public. He also urged the government and the public to appreciate and support the doctors who were risking their lives to save others.
The NMA is the umbrella body of doctors in Nigeria and has been advocating for better working conditions and remuneration for its members. The association has also been at the forefront of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria, which has claimed over 3,000 lives and infected over 200,000 people.
The NMA has called for more investment in the health sector and improved access to quality health care for all Nigerians. The doctors hope that their demands will be met soon and that they will not have to resort to industrial action, which could disrupt health services and endanger lives.
Source: [Punch]
