Our Correspondent|19 April 2018
The Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) has called on its members nationwide to continue to deliver services to members of the public in their various health institutions as the Joint Health Sector Union members embarks on strike.
In view of this, MDCAN has warned JOHESU members to desist from harassing their members, medical doctors and other health worker willing to offer services.
This is contained in a statement jointly signed by the National President and Secretary General of MDCAN, Prof. Ngim Ngim and Dr Affiong Ibanga of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital.
The statement was made available to newsmen on Thursday in Calabar.
The statement said that MDCAN will not condone any harassment from members of JOHESU against other health workers willing to offer medical services to the general public as the strike continues.
The statement said that although MDCAN recognises the right of workers to negotiate terms of engagement with their employers, it was right to be done within the ambit of extant laws and in compliance with international best practices.
“The striking health workers are warned to desist from harassing any member of MDCAN, medical doctors and indeed any other health worker willing to continue rendering medical services.
“Though MDCAN does not oppose an upward review of wages of workers in the health or other sectors, it is important that the government be reminded to strictly take into account and comply with the existing relativity in wages of professional groups in the sector.
“It is important to inform those who may not be aware that there has not been any upward review of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure contrary to the dis-information being peddled by these striking workers to hoodwink them to gain public sympathy.
“The adjustment of CONMESS in 2014 was a correction of an error to restore relativity when the government realised that the principle of relativity for which there is a valid and subsisting agreement with the federal government had been inadvertently breached during the negotiation process.
“This corrected CONMESS is not an increase in salary and should not be misconstrued as such. Acceding to the current demands by JOHESU will create a fresh distortion in the relativity and certainly lead to another round of protracted crisis in the health sector.”
According to the statement, MDCAN and all medical and dental practitioners in the country will reject in its totality any action by the government that erodes this international best practice of relativity of wages in the health sector.
The statement directs members of MDCAN across the country to work with the management team of their hospitals to continue to provide services within the limits of professional safety.
The association appealed to Chief Medical Directors of tertiary hospitals to rise up to the occasion and take steps to provide necessary materials for service delivery and ensure the security and safety of consultants and other workers who are not on strike.
The association advised the federal government to implement the Yayale Ahmed Committee report on resolution of inter-professional disharmony in the health sector with a view to put an end to the crisis in the health sector.
JOHESU embarked on strike on April 17 , demanding an upward review in wages.
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