Resident doctors in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have confirmed the government’s partial implementation of their demands, but say the indefinite strike will continue until all outstanding issues are addressed.
In an update issued on Wednesday, the President of the Association of Resident Doctors, FCTA chapter (ARD-FCTA), George Ebong, said some doctors who had been owed salaries and training funds had finally received payment after years of waiting.
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According to Mr Ebong, 28 doctors who had been owed salary arrears ranging from one month to one year for over two years were paid on Monday night.
He added that payments had also commenced for the Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF). Of the 150 doctors owed, 103 had been paid, leaving 47 without their entitlements.
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He noted that salaries were also paid yesterday morning and expressed gratitude to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, describing the development as “the beginning of the implementation of demands.”
Outstanding demands
Despite the progress, the association said several critical issues remain unresolved.
Mr Ebong listed these to include the immediate payment of the remaining 47 doctors owed MRTF, external resident doctors owed six to seven months’ salaries, and the settlement of long-standing skipping arrears, promotion arrears, and post-Part II conversion arrears.
He also cited the need for the implementation of the CONMESS 25/35 per cent adjustment already effected in federal health institutions, as well as the payment of the wage award and 13 months’ hazard allowance arrears dating back to 2021.
Other demands include the immediate employment of additional doctors and the creation of more favourable working conditions.
“These demands are very pertinent to this strike and are also the prerequisites to its suspension, both at the NARD level and at the ARD-FCTA,” he said.
Appeal for lasting dialogue
The association commended the ongoing dialogues with the National Assembly and FCTA management, expressing hope for a sustainable resolution to what it described as “the lamentable situation of the healthcare system.”
Mr Ebong noted that management and government should not always wait for a strike to occur before responding to the doctors’ concerns.
He, however, reaffirmed that the indefinite strike will continue until all outstanding issues are addressed.
Unmet demands
The nationwide strike by the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) began on 1 November over what the group described as the government’s failure to address long-standing welfare and working condition issues.
The doctors cited unpaid salary arrears, poor work environments, unpaid promotion allowances, and the exclusion of house officers from the civil service scheme.
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ARD-FCTA also declared a separate indefinite strike the same day, protesting unpaid salaries since 2023, delayed promotions, non-payment of the MRTF, and other outstanding benefits.
NARD says doctors in several teaching hospitals are still owed between four and 18 months of salaries and allowances.
PREMIUM TIMES has visited several hospitals during this period and observed that many wards remain short-staffed, with patients and relatives stranded as services are disrupted.
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