Just In: More trouble for Bello as Doctors go on strike in Kogi

The troubles confronting Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello seem to be heightening as the


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Just In: More trouble for Bello as Doctors go on strike in Kogi

Business

The troubles confronting Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello seem to be heightening as the Kogi State Chapter of Nigeria Medical Association, NMA on Tuesday May 2 directed all its members to embark on indefinite strike from 12 midnight of Wednesday May 3, pending when a resolution will be reached with the State Government on the payment of outstanding salaries and arrears being owed the Doctors, Fresh Angle International can authoritatively report.

This much was disclosed in a communiqué issued at the end of an emergency congress held in Lokoja, the State Capital.

Our Kogi State Correspondent reports that the communiqué was signed by the Chairman and Secretary of the association, Dr. Tijani Godwin and Dr. Zubair Kabiru, respectively.

The communiqué expressed disappointment that the State Government has failed to meet its own side of the bargain in spite of an earlier suspension of the strike for two months to allow peaceful resolution.

Some of the issues that necessitated the strike include special consideration to all doctors employed in 2015 as earlier documented in the memorandum of understanding signed on the 9th of January 2017 between Kogi State government and NMA, failure to clear nine doctors after providing necessary documents as required by the screening committee, under-payment of salaries and arrears of doctors that have been paid,  implementation of the new tax regime without commensurate promotion, stepping of doctors in the State civil service as well as advertisement for employment of more doctors.

The Union declared that the present administration in the State has failed to implement the adjusted Consolidation Medical Salary Scale, CONMESS and warned doctors who decide to pick up employment with the Kogi State Government to be mindful of the fact that the State Government has not paid all the doctors currently in her workforce.

The communiqué reads inter-alia, " the Kogi State Government retain and pay the arrears of all the doctors employed in 2015 as they have waited patiently, while providing healthcare service in the state for over 15 months without salaries, clear and pay the remaining nine doctors whose name did not appear on any list and issues of underpayment of salaries and arrears should be corrected forthwith."

Aside from the payment of these arrears, the association also asked the State Government to return the new tax regime to status quo, or promote doctors accordingly before implementation as they canvass for uniform taxation among all the doctors in Kogi State civil service.

It would be recalled that the Association in December 2016 embarked on a warning strike and suspended it in January 2017 over unpaid salaries of doctors in the state.


Copyright: Fresh Angle International (www.freshangleng.com)
ISSN 2354 - 4104


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Odimayo Olatunde Frederick
graduate of Mass Communication and Kogi State Bureau Chief of Fresh Angle International Newspaper
Read other stories by Odimayo Olatunde Frederick

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