The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) at Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH) has initiated a five-day warning strike in response to the nonpayment of salaries owed to some members.
Dr. Ashiru Mikail, Vice President of the association, announced the strike during a news conference on Monday in Zaria.
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Mikail explained that the association had issued an ultimatum to the hospital management on July 15, demanding resolution of their grievances within a week. The ultimatum expired on Sunday, prompting the commencement of the warning strike.
“The association will reconvene to review its strategy after the warning strike and determine the next line of action,” Mikail stated.
Central to the doctors’ demands is the rejection of percentage salary payments for members on the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) platform. They are also demanding the repayment of portions of their salaries that have been withheld. According to Mikail, in June, the salaries of affected members were slashed by approximately 25 to 27 percent, amounting to N58,000 to N60,000.
Mikail highlighted that the doctors receiving percentage payments in June are still owed salary arrears from 2021. “Despite the harsh economic challenges in the country, no reasonable reasons for the deductions were advanced to the association by the management,” he said.
The management proposed to pay N2 million monthly to offset the arrears of accoutrement allowance from the overhead cost, which translates to only N5,000 per member each month. This amount is significantly lower than the N100,000 owed to each member.
Mikail noted that more than 60 percent of federal tertiary health institutions in the North West zone have commenced payments of the arrears of accoutrement allowance, whereas ABUTH has proposed a much lower payment of N5,000 instead of N25,000.
The association is also demanding the implementation of a 25 percent Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) upward review for the salaries of members on the GIFMIS platform, among other demands.
