Nigerian Doctors in Lagos begin three-day warning strike

Nigerian Doctors under the umbrellaof the Medical Guild in Lagos State are to start three days cautioning strike from today over issues that influence their security and government assistance. 

The Chairman of the Guild, Dr. Oluwajimi Sodipo, who tended to journalists yesterday in Lagos, said the strike, which would run till July 16, would exclude individuals working in the state's COVID-19 disengagement habitats. 

He said Congress of the Guild on June 27 stretched out the fourteen days final proposal to the state government, after termination of its underlying 21 days final offer to determine the issues. 

The organization head noticed that the grace period was given to the legislature to meet 70 percent of the specialists' requests so as to turn away the strike. 

He said that the Council, after its gathering on July 11, saw that a portion of the requests were uncertain by the legislature. 

As indicated by him, wage divergence between the Federal and Lagos State specialists isn't being given essential consideration by the state government.

He said;

“The issue of COVID-19 hazard allowances and inducement allowances Memorandum of Understanding approved by the Federal Government to the doctors has not been approved by the Lagos Government to her doctors.

“Doctors working in COVID-19 isolation centres are still being owed two months salaries, which has remained unpaid at the moment.

“They are also being unceremoniously disengaged without recourse to their welfare,” he said.

The chairman stressed that the issue of doctors getting infected and re-infected on a daily basis was not getting the required attention from the government.

“Our members are putting themselves on the line daily to provide care, and we need to do everything to protect our colleagues,” Sodipo said.

He said adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), prompt testing of health workers and insurance should be provided. Sodipo added that issues of shortage of doctors in health facilities have yet to be resolved with no visible substantive action taken by the government to resolve it.

“The congress will reconvene after the three days warning strike to review the progress made and plan for further actions.

“We call on the Lagos State Government to do all within its power to resolve the impasse,” he said.