Fred Ezeh, Abuja
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has ordered its members who have downed tools over unfair labour treatment or other related issues to return to work and help to respond to any outbreak of coronavirus or any other communicable disease.
Specifically, NMA asked the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) in FCT, Gombe, ESUT-Parklane and Kaduna as well as NMA Cross Rivers to immediately report back to work and attend to the health need of Nigerians.
NMA President, Dr. Francis Faduyile, who addressed journalists in Abuja, on Friday, said the gesture was geared towards responding to health needs of Nigerians notwithstanding the inhuman treatment meted to their members nationwide.
The umbrella body of medical doctors in Nigeria, however, promised to take over the dispute and interact with the different organs/agencies of government in a bid to resolve the industrial dispute.
He said: “As professional body saddled with the responsibilities of caring for humanity, NMA has taken into cognizance efforts being made by government at different levels to contain the spread of coronavirus and we would support them, irrespective of the unhealthy industrial relationship.”
He said that NMA should not hesitate to take appropriate action(s) against government organs/agencies that fail to reciprocate the gesture by honouring agreements with their workers after containing COVID-19 scourge.
He called on government to provide all the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) to the different hospitals so that health personnel can adequately and appropriately manage their patients.
He promised that the national NMA committee on emerging and re-emerging diseases shall be strengthened to interact with the Federal Government in an effort to contain the spread of coronavirus in Nigeria.