Kogi govt meets 80% of doctors demands -Commissioner
Kogi state commissioner of Health, Dr. Saka Haruna, has said that the on-going strike embarked upon by doctors with their threat for mass resignation, is uncalled for as more than 80 percent of their demands have been met by government.
The commissioner, who called on the striking doctors to embrace dialogue with the constituted authority in pressing home their demands, described the disagreement as a family issue which is capable of being resolved internally.
Dr. Haruna, who was reacting to the the face-off disclosed, that 163 doctors are currently under the employment of the state government of which only 25 had issues to be resolved on the outcome of the staff verification exercise that was conducted by government, including those that were uncleared and those employed in 2015.
Dr. Saka reiterated government’s commitment to ensuring uninterrupted health care delivery service in the state while appealing to the striking doctors to resume duty with out further delay in the interest of so many patients who are dying in the hospitals as a result of the lingering problem.
The commissioner commended the state government for releasing N2.14 billion for the recruitment of over 800 medical personnel as part of its efforts to boost the needed manpower in all the government health institutions across the state.
Under the new employment, 180 medical officers, 52 consultants, 199 pharmacists, 400 nurses, 100 laboratory technicians and 49 5radiographers would be employed.
The doctors are defiant and belligerent insisting that all their demands should be met and ready to be sacked or resign en mass if government fails to meet all their demands
It would be recalled that doctors with the state government on Wednesday embarked on an indefinite strike over unpaid salaries, sacking of their colleagues employed in 2015, non implementation of their back log promotions and review of their over bloated tax.
