The Socialist Party of Nigeria, ( SPN ) Oyo State Chapter has called on the Seyi Makinde – led government to use the ultimatum given to it by the Association of Resident Doctors at Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital, LAUTECH, Ogbomoso to meet their demands in order to avert another industrial action and its attendant implication on the ordinary people of the state, adding that it will be quite unfortunate at this critical period that the state is helpless and the lives of thousands of working people are at risk with the rising cases of COVID-19.
The party also called on mass of the working people in the state, particularly the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC) and Trade Union Congress, (TUC) to lend support to these demands of the resident doctors with a view to prevail on the present administration to accede to these demands without further delay.
The association had on June 11, 2020 issued a 14 day- ultimatum with a threat to down tools should the Management of the Hospital and the Oyo state government fail to respond to their list of demands.
Their demands include an improved salary scale of doctors to corrected CONMESS which other health workers in the country have been enjoying since 2014.
Also listed are payment of new minimum wage to them as being enjoyed by other state workers since January 2020 and urgent payment of their two years half salary arrears for January 2016 to December 2017.And others are installation, repair and maintainance of their sophisticated medical equipment for upmost service delivery, and employment of new staff as well as medical staff to lessen their burden.
The party’s scribe, Comrade Ayodeji Adigun who made this call in a statement on Thursday in Ibadan, and made available to Mega Icon Magazine also noted that the demands of the resident doctors and the threat of strike have further exposed and made a mockery of all the so called achievements claimed by the government in the health sector in its one year in office.
Adigun said the demands by the doctors have no doubt showed that the claim of the implementation of the new minimum wage by Governor Makinde for all categories of civil servants in the state is not only sectional but also deceptive, alleging that most of the so-called achievements are largely for the purpose of grandstanding and propaganda.
The statement read, “It is in a bid to avert this ugly situation that we hereby call on mass of the working people in the State particularly the leadership of the two existing labour centre in the State; Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC and Trade Union Congress, TUC to lend support to these demands of the resident doctors with a view to prevail on Engr Seyi Makinde-led government to accede to these demands without further delay. We also call on NMA and other health workers unions to solidarise with the doctors in their struggle.
“Beyond this is also to note that the demands of the resident doctors and the threat of strike have further exposed and made a mockery of all the so called achievements claimed by the Engr Seyi Makinde-led government in the health sector in its one year in office. Again, the demands by the doctors have no doubt showed that the claim of the implementation of the new minimum wage by Engr Seyi Makinde-led government for all categories of civil servants in the State is not only sectional but also deceptive.
“This has again underscored the SPN standpoint that most of the so-called achievements of Engr Seyi Makinde-led government are largely for the purpose of grandstanding and propaganda”.
The party, however urged the resident doctors not to limit the ultimatum to just a media pronouncement, but should also commence immediate mobilisation and sensitisation of other categories of health workers including the mass of Nigeria workers and the poor masses across the state in order to win mass support for their demands and the strike should the Makinde led government fails to accede to their demands.
