Strike: FG Offers To Pay Salary Arrears Of Doctors

13 min read 2,514 words 8 views

As part of steps to end the on-going strike that has paralysed
many hospitals, the Federal Government has directed immediate
payment of salary arrears of over 450 medical doctors.

Those affected are mostly House Officers, who are being owed for
three months.

Also, government said it has started discussing with the
Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and other health associations on
the review of the Hazard Allowance for all workers in the
sector.

It acknowledge N5,000 Hazard Allowance per head as paltry and
pledged to review it.

The government appealed to doctors to abide by their Hippocratic
Oath by calling off the strike in the interest of Nigerians.

Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige made the
disclosures in an exclusive interview with The Nation.

He said: “Those people are not being owed, their money is there.
The issue is about migration from GIFMIS to IPPIS. It was like the
case of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

“But, their list has been compiled and submitted on Saturday for
Accountant-General of the Federation’s office to start payment of
the backlog of three months for the two groups. If you are employed
in January up to March and you have not been paid, is it not three
months?

If you terminated your payment in GIFMIS in October up to
December, is it not three months? We are going to pay them.

“At the conciliation, we gave everybody waiver over the payroll.
So, it is in the agreement we signed, the Memorandum of Action,
that they are saying they don’t want or that their is president is
saying he does not want. He didn’t know because he didn’t
participate in the meeting.

“So, I expect that the payment to start any moment from Monday.
IPPIS office assured me that they will start paying, if they get
the full list. That is the major one.”

On Hazard Allowance, he said the government had started talks
with NMA and others since February.

Ngige said: “That issue about hazard allowance, we started that
proactively in February. I started that with the Remuneration
Committee of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) at the instance
of the NMA President who solicited for me to see them.

“With my officials from Employment and Wages Department, we
started some discussion We have also held some preliminary
discussions with some other groups in the health sector. This is a
business or work in progress.

“For anybody to say that we have not started discussing, it is a
lie. But, it is not a business we can do with only doctors. We have
discussed it with lab technologists, medical workers union,
association of radiologists, pharmacists and all that work in the
hospital environment. Everybody that works in hospital environment
as at today takes hazard allowance

“The hazard allowance they are taking today is very paltry, it
is N5,000. That was why the Federal Government decided to shelve it
and paid them Special COVID Hazard allowance last year for the
months of April, May and June. And it cost the government
N32billion.

In a statement by the Ministry of Labour and Employment through
its Deputy Director (Press), Mr. Charles Akpan, explained why the
salary arrears accumulated.

It accused some Chief Medical Directors of conducting
recruitment of House Officers in violation of a circular which
prohibited it.

It said: “The central placement of House Officers was approved
by the FEC for all would be intern in federal tertiary institutions
to enable these graduates not to roam the streets for up to twelve
months, waiting for spaces for housemanship. This was meant to curb
favoritism and corruption associated with their recruitment in
different centers, hence, the last Executive Committee of the NMA
was informed of the decision and they fully supported.

“This same centralised recruitment was meant for other health
professionals. But, medical graduates were chosen for the pilot,
which was to start in in 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

“However, January 2021 was chosen as the commencement of
recruitment from the federal teaching hospitals and medical
centres. NMA was aware of this arrangement and made no effort to
liaise with the Federal Ministry of Health, the Medical and Dental
Council of Nigeria and the Committee of Chief Medical Directors to
ensure a smooth transition and migration of house officers at the
tail end of their training programmes into the IPPIS platform for
the uninterrupted continuation of their emoluments, salaries and
allowances.

“This abdication of responsibility resulted in the present
chaotic situation, which made some Chief Medical Directors to go
ahead and conduct recruitment of new house officers on their own in
violation of circular which prohibits same. They claimed they did
this to maintain their manpower need to save lives.”

On Hazard Allowance, the government said the input of the
doctors and other health workers had not been received by the
government.

The statement added: “The Hon. Minister of Labour had also
advised the committee to send in their proposal through the Federal
Ministry of health, their employers, and up till date, no such
proposal has reached the desk of the minister. The minister equally
gave audience to two professional groups in the health sector and
advised them same.

“The minister, as the co-chair of the Presidential Committee on
Salaries and Wages, held similar meetings with two other health
professional groups at their request and also advised them in the
same way to send in their proposal through the Federal Ministry of
Health. We are not sure the Ministry of Health received these
proposals till now.

Giving more insights into what led to the crisis in the health
sector

The statement added: “National Association of Resident Doctors
(NARD) was also kept in the dark by the NMA leadership. At the
request of the president of the NMA, the Minister of Labour and
Employment had received in audience and held a technical session
with the NMA Remuneration Committee led by Dr. Orhue on the issue
of hazard allowance – from N5000 to a new rate based on CONMES
salary structure.”

It said the Minister was of the opinion that NARD should have
allowed the NMA to handle all issues instead of going on
strike.

The statement said: “The Minister further said the House
officers are not members of NARD since they are medical doctors
with provisional license, hence members of NMA which is the
professional umbrella for all doctors.

“The abdication of responsibility for protecting the baby
doctors by the NMA is nothing but a grave display of lack of
leadership, indeed leadership failure. Playing the ostrich and
hiring militant NARD to lead the way in what should be a smooth
display of administrative craftmanship.

“Ngige added that the invocation of national strike by NARD over
an issue that could be handled by the NMA does not help the
nation.”

It also quoted the Minister as saying: “I am aware that the NMA
President had complained he does not get the expected cooperation,
even audience with the two Health Ministers and their officials,
but that is one of the challenges faced by people in leadership, a
situation that has made my ministry to play proactive roles to
prevent the strike not only in health sector, but in education and
others.

“But the NMA President is reminded that he cannot effectively
pilot the big job of the presidency of the Nigerian Medical
Association from his new seat as the Vice chancellor of the new
Federal University of Medical Science, Oturkpo Benue State.”