‘If You Go On Strike, I Won’t Pay You When You Resume’ – Wike Dares Doctors

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has issued a warning to resident doctors in Abuja against threatening to embark on industrial action.

Naija News recalls that the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) have been on-and-off industrial actions due to the Federal Government’s failure to meet its demands.

The doctors’ demands, among many others, include the immediate payment of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF), tangible steps on the upward review of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS), and payment of all salary arrears owed its members since 2015.

The doctors also want the immediate massive recruitment of clinical staff in the hospitals and the abolishment of bureaucratic limitations to replace doctors and nurses who leave the system quickly.

They also want the immediate review of hazard allowance by all the state governments and private tertiary health institutions where any form of residency training is done.

Addressing resident doctors in Abuja, Wike said doctors are free to make their recommendations, and the Federal Government will look into them.

The Minister expressed displeasure for industrial action, stressing that he would make more money when doctors embark on strike.

Wike said he would not pay doctors who embark on strike, adding that he is ready to contend with them in court.

He said, “Make your recommendations, and we will see the ones we can do and those we can’t do. Don’t threaten me with a strike because I don’t like it. When you go on strike, I save money; even if you come back, I won’t pay; we will determine it in court.

“It’s not about promises but the reality on ground, I don’t believe in theory.”