Remove NMA Strickers From Your Cars, Stop Wearing Emblem, Ekiti Doctors Urged

Following the recent waves of abduction of medical doctors in Ekiti State, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has advised members to remove stickers of the union from their vehicles and stop wearing the emblem.

The advice was a security tip to curtail kidnap and unwarranted attacks on doctors by kidnappers that have been operating in the state in the last two weeks.

The association also berated security agencies’ reaction to the kidnap of their members, saying they deserved to be protected considering the special services they render to the society.

Recall that a former Chief Medical Director of Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Dr. Patrick Adegun, and his wife, Kikelomo, alongside an industrialist, were kidnapped on Thursday at different locations in the state.

Also, a theatre nurse with the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, Mrs. Margaret Aladenika, was kidnapped on Sunday, along Ido-Ipere-Iludun road.

And a yet to be identified man was killed in the operation.

The Ekiti State Chairman of the NMA , Dr. John Akinbote said, “We are also advising them to stop moving around at night because these people have the erroneous impression that we receive higher pay and that we can be profitable object of kidnap. This is responsible for why kidnappers were after us.

“They have to remove anything that could suggest that we are members of this association since we are the target,” he said.

Akinbote called on Governor Ayodele Fayose to put machineries in motion to ensure unconditional release of the hostages to save their families from unnecessary trauma.

He lamented that the police and the SSS operatives had not given them enough protection, despite that the number of doctors that are receiving kidnap threats keep rising on a daily basis.

He said, “Most of our members who go to duties at night have been complaining that they used to drive several kilometres on the road without seeing police patrol vehicle on the way.

He said, “We have given the names and numbers of those that have received kidnap threats to the police and the SSS for a possible tracking down of the perpetrators, but nothing had been done in this regard. This has been a source of worry to us as an association.”

The NMA expressed concerns over the kidnappers’ refusal to open line of communication with Mrs. Aladenika’s family, saying this might be a change of strategy on the part of the captors. He said this called for serious concerns.