By Bashir Abdullahi II

Mr ABC is a 68-year-old retired driver who woke up on Monday morning, prepared for his hospital visit at a federal tertiary hospital and set out for a 4-hour journey to the hospital.

Distraught by the economic hardship occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic as well as ill-timed government policies like the recent hike in electricity tariffs and prices of petroleum products, Mr ABC on reaching the hospital was asked to seek medical help in a private facility or to go back home and live with his ailment or perhaps die if he doesn’t survive the biting disease.

He was told the resident doctors, who constitute the majority of the doctors workforce are on strike.

The above scenario has been the fate of millions of Nigerian patients who often bare the brunt between spaces of battles or conflict between Unions/Associations and government.

Both NARD and government have made several claims and counter-claims with regards the demands of NARD.

While NARD in its communiqué issued on the 4th of September, 2020 noted that it was embarking on an indefinite nationwide strike due to reasons that bothered on non-implementation of the residency training Act, lack of group life insurance and death in service benefits for health workers, non-payment of COVID-19 inducement allowances in some health institutions, non-payment of 2014,2015, 2016 salary shortfall and non implementation of appropriate salary structure for doctors in state owned tertiary hospitals among other issues.

Government on the other hand claims it expended N9.3 billion on premium for group life insurance for medical/health workers and over N20 billion on special hazard allowances with another N4billion in special intervention for COVID-19.

The Minister for Labour and Productivity, Dr Chris Ngige, a medical doctor by training, also disclosed that N500 billion has been appropriated in 2020 for funding medical residency training.

To NARD, the record must be set straight.

All demands cannot be met in one day. To government, all agreements reached should be honored.

A government that recurrently reneges on its promises is likely to loose the trust of its citizens.

Going by the figures enumerated by the honorable minister, one may think government is making or has made enough investments in the health sector. But looking at our budgetary antecedents, these knee-jerk responses and expenses by the federal government brings little or no good to the health sector.

Government needs to be more strategic and deliberate in matters of budgetary allocations instead of reeling out figures all in an attempt to mislead striking workers into calling off an industrial action. In this light, the WHO recommended health budgetary allocation of 15% of total budget should be adhered to.

Deliberate and sustained policies/funding will yield better achievements than these knee-jerk actions.

NARD must also demonstrate understanding and consider the plight of the ordinary citizens who can’t afford health services in the private sector. I would expect that demands for expansion of health insurance to both non-formal and retired workers should be on the front burner.

I can only imagine the solidarity and impact if NARD embarks on an industrial action with the sole request of ensuring universal health coverage and insurance for all Nigerians.

This is not to suggest their current demands are not germane.
I call on President Muhammadu Buhari to disabuse the notion from most quarters of the country that his government is non-challant about the health sector simply because he and the first family have access to quality health outside the country at whatever cost. And that he has indeed led the fray of out bound medical tourism with such precision and perfection.

To disabuse our minds, the president must be seen to take bold conscious reforms that will strengthen the capacity of the Nigerian health space. He should know that it is only with good health will Nigerians find the fullness of their own great talents and economic potentials.

Bashir Abdullahi II is the
Convener, Hope Initiative

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THE NIGERIAN ASSOCIATION OF RESIDENT DOCTORS (NARD) STRIKE: TRAGEDY OF A WEAK HEALTH SYSTEM