A five-day strike by resident doctors demanding a 200% pay increase has disrupted medical services at teaching hospitals across Nigeria.
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors stated that it took action because the government had failed to honor pay and staff welfare agreements.
“I brought my daughter for treatment for the first time, but I was told to bring her back tomorrow.” “People are just sitting there hoping to be attended to,” a father said just outside Lagos State University Teaching Hospital.
The salary structure for doctors was implemented in 2009, and the government is required to review their salaries every five years.
However, no salary review has been conducted since then, which is why they are requesting 200% pay increases.
They are also calling for the withdrawal of a bill that would prevent newly graduated doctors from leaving the country until they have worked for five years.
The government has declared the strike illegal because the health officials failed to provide the required 21-day notice.
