World Health Day 2021: Nigerian Doctors on strike as World celebrate

On 7 April 2021, World Health Day is commemorated globally, under the theme “together for a fairer, healthier world”. On this occasion, the World Health Organization (WHO) calls for urgent action to eliminate health inequities and mobilize action to attain better health for all and leave no one behind

However the story in Nigeria seems to be different, Dr. Aliyu Sokomba, President of the National Association of Resident Doctors said “It is an indefinite strike until issues are resolved,” he said. “All resident doctors at the Covid-19 centers have joined the strike”.

Resident Doctors are medical school graduates, who are training to be specialized and they represent a very important part of the Nigerian health care system as the nearly dominate emergency wards.

Sokomba said, Doctors and healthcare workers had previously gone on strike in June 2020 to demand the provision of efficient protective equipment as well as life insurance and hazard allowance.

Meanwhile, Minister of Labor Chris Ngige called on the doctors to suspend the strike as he said in a statement “All parties are enjoined not to employ arm-twisting methods to intimidate or foist a state of helplessness on the other party”. While insisting in an interview on local TV, if workers refuse to resume he will implement no-work-no pay.