Posted By pmnews On March 2, 2011 @ 1:17 pm In Metro,News | No Comments
A group of concerned mothers, Lady of Africa and Empowerment Advocacy Foundation yesterday protested to the Lagos State Government Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, Southwest Nigeria demanding an end to the ongoing strike by doctors in government hospitals.
The Medical Guild had early last month resumed the strike it suspended late last year to press home the implementation of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure, CONMESS.
The group led by Mrs Bukola Fasuyi recalled that the protracted industrial action by the medical doctors had brought untold hardship to the people thereby resulting in the deaths of people particularly children and mothers.
Fasuyi urged the state government to meet the demands of the striking doctors and called on the doctors to call off the strike and enter into a meaningful dialogue with the state government to further iron out the grey areas inhibiting calling off the strike.
She noted that as mothers, they could not understand why and how doctors should embark on a strike when they knew that their services were critical to the survival of the human race.
State Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris reiterated government’s commitment at resolving the strike as quickly as possible in view of the hardship being faced by residents of the state in accessing healthcare services from public hospitals in Lagos.
He pleaded with the doctors to end their strike and sympathized with the people over the untold hardship the strike had brought on them, assuring that government was doing all within its powers to reduce the hardship.
“We will try to resolve it as quickly as possible. We are not happy that the hospitals are shut, we are not happy that our children are dying. We had and we will continue to make alternative arrangement to reduce the effect of the strike on the people,” he stated.
According to Idris, the government would continue to plead with the doctors and would strive to ensure that the hospitals were opened soonest.
Idris said that the government had met about 90 percent of the doctors’ demand, adding also that discussion on the full implementation of their demand would continue if only they could go back to work.
“We have made offers to the striking doctors. We have been discussing with them and we will continue to discuss with them. We have begged them to go back to work, whatever it is that is left is not enough reason for them to abandon their hospitals and consulting tables,” he added.
—Kazeem Ugbodaga
