From: Magnus Eze, Abuja
The Joint Heath Sector Unions and Assembly of Health Care Professionals (JOHESU), on Sunday, called on the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, to prevail on medical doctors especially Chief Medical Directors (CMDs) of federal tertiary health institutions, to refrain from intimidating their members.
Reacting to alleged manhandling of the JOHESU branch Chairman of Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) in Edo State, Fidelis Ogobor, by the Chairman of the hospital’s Medical Advisory Committee (CMAC), when the union leader led a monitoring team to check compliance to the strike of medical workers, JOHESU National Chairman, Biobelemoye Josiah, warned against provocation of their members.
He noted that JOHESU members had remained calm and law abiding since the commencement of their nationwide strike, but expressed displeasure “with the ISTH CMAC who stooped so low to have slapped Comrade Ogobor and destroyed the mobile handset (iphone) belonging to another of our member, Mr. Tune.”
A statement by the JOHESU National Chairman further read; “We also wish to remind the Minister that during the period when the Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) embarked on strike, no JOHESU member had any cause to have any provocative encounter; nor interfere with the doctors or any member of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA).
“We also remind Government that no amount of provocation will intimidate JOHESU members from continuing our just fight against discrimination, corruption, under-funding etc, until our demands are met.”
Five health sector unions had on September 21, commenced industrial action, code named “Operation Alligator Bite”, over the failure of the Federal Government to “implement series of MOUs, agreements and court cases which JOHESU has won at the National Industrial Court, including neglect of our members.”