The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has suspended its more than eight-week-old nationwide strike for six weeks after which the national executive council of the association would meet to determine the next line of action.
President of the association, Dr Godiya Ishaya, said on Monday that the industrial action which began on August 2 had been called off and work is expected to resume on Wednesday, October 6.
He said the dispute was suspended not because the federal government met all their demands, but that there was a stalemate when government invoked the Trade Dispute Act, saying some agreements could not be implemented if they (doctors) were not at their duty post.
“There were points that have actually been significantly addressed and there were some that have been stalemated because the government was invoking the Trade Dispute Act on us.
“And the part the government invoked says ‘you shouldn’t pay any remuneration to any employee who has engaged in any form of lockout or strike’.
“Some of the minimal demands were difficult to achieve since they say they won’t pay, as we are on strike.
“One of those was the fact we demanded that some of our members be enrolled into IPPIs and their arrears of four to six months be paid to them.
“The government said they have enrolled them, but they are not able to pay-roll them because we are on strike.
“So they assumed a position that they cannot pay-roll them because we are on strike and without being pay-rolled they cannot get their arrears.
“So that was the stalemate that we had with the government and likewise the issue of medical residency,” he said.
He added that the government insisted that since their migration to IPPIS they had have not received any salary to verify if they were the real owners of those accounts.
“So we have to give a window so that their salaries will be paid in other to identify their accounts and their arrears will also be pushed into those accounts.
“That was where we felt there was a stalemate that needed to be cleared, “he added.
Godiya said the strike was being suspended for six weeks to give room for movement in some of the items NARD noticed a stalemate.
On the issue of ‘no work, no pay,’ he said: “We have not agreed to forfeit our salaries. The strike was unnecessarily prolonged because of the government’s response to the strike. Instead of sitting on the table, the government decided to go to court and that kept prolonging negotiation,” he said.
