The Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) in the Federal Capital Territory has vowed to go on the ‘deadliest shutdown’ of hospitals in 14 days’ time if outstanding demands are not met.
The President of the association, Dr George Ebong, issued the warning on Monday during a press conference at Wuse District Hospital, Abuja.
Ebong warned the Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, that there is an urgent need to focus on the well-being of doctors who are on the verge of extinction due to economic hardship.
Praising Wike for his infrastructural projects in Abuja, he urged him to also pay the same attention to human development.
Ebong noted that the FCT minister has 14 days to act on the demands to avert what he described as the deadliest shutdown of hospitals in the nation’s capital.
He said, “First we have to appreciate the minister for his infrastructural development in the FCT since his emergence.
We want him to know that doctors is an abandoned project. While he fixes the infrastructural abandoned project, we are the human abandoned projects. We believe the minister can deal with the challenge.
We want the minister to clear 6 months of salary arrears owed to our members employed in 2023.
The minister should with urgency clear the payment of the Medical Residency Training Fund of 2024.
Also, we want the minister to review the bonding policy to two years instead of 6 years.
Other demands are we want the minister to enforce the implementation of skipping and issuance of skipping letters to our members employed in 2023, immediate payment of accoutrements allowance for 2024, payment of outgoing 13 months hazard allowance arrears, and the FCTA management should fast-track conversion of ARD FCTA Post 2 members to consultants and expedite the process of employment of health care workers to buffer the manpower shortage in the Nation’s capital hospitals.
This injustice is alien to FCT; if this is allowed to continue, the nation’s health sector will collapse. We want the minister to solve the problems so doctors can practice to the best of their ability.
We earlier gave a 21-day ultimatum last week during our Annual General Meeting, leaving 14 days. We don’t want the deadliest shutdown that may lead to loss of lives; it is important that the minister listen and act on demand without delays.
