The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) in the nation’s tertiary health institutions has called out its members from work. Only skeletal services are being rendered in the tertiary hospitals since the strike started on July 26.

It is unfortunate that the government was unable to avert the strike given how sensitive the sector is and its effects on patients and their relations. Although there are private tertiary health institutions, they are too few and expensive for majority of the people.

The Bola Tinubu administration inherited the doctors’ grouse. Indeed, in recent years, professionals in the sector have been leaving the country in droves, owing to poor conditions of service and failure of government to adequately equip the hospitals.

As the Coronavirus pandemic raged all over the world in 2020, it took the intervention of well-meaning Nigerians to avert a strike by resident doctors who could not understand why they should be paid a paltry N5,000 per month to confront the monster. Promises were made, but, as usual, government has observed the agreement in the breach.

It was shocking to many when former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, told a bewildered Senate committee hearing on the pandemic that he had no idea the state of our health infrastructure. Since then, despite promises made and agreements signed, nothing has been done to improve the situation.

As the National Chairman of NARD, Dr. Emeka Orji, said in an interview at the commencement of the industrial action, government does not seem to have demonstrated enough good faith. Some of the items on the Memorandum of Understanding could have been given effect by the Buhari administration, or even the current leaders. There is, for instance, an understanding that every doctor that had left our shores would be replaced one-for-one. This has not been done despite the fact that it would not cost more. There was also an agreement that residency studies would be fully funded, and the year’s budget has made provision for it. Yet, nothing has been done in that respect. Other issues that would take longer time include increasing the budget for the health sector, providing better equipment for the hospitals, and ensuring that primary and secondary health facilities are strengthened to cope with demands of a growing population.

It is surprising that in all the discussions on palliative, no mention has been made about the health needs of the people and the plight of professionals working in the clinics. It’s not only doctors who are fleeing in search of greener pastures; nurses, pharmacists and laboratory scientists too, are. Government should come up with an agenda for revamping the sector.

We are aware that the Tinubu administration has barely taken off and is confronted with legacy challenges that would take time to clear. At the same time that the resident doctors embarked on an industrial action, the umbrella labour unions, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) are on the streets protesting the difficult times in the country. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has not forgotten its grouse, and is still demanding the eight months salaries withheld by government for its members’ ill- fated, long drawn strike of 2022.

Ultimately, there is the need for both parties to resume negotiations, demonstrating good faith and examining the situation with a positive mindset. All the betrayals of the past should be set aside with a view to achieving results that would benefit the country. Both parties should realise that lives lost in the process cannot be revived, hence the need to consider patients’ interests as paramount. The doctors have sufficiently made their point, the table should be set for negotiation now.

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