NMA gives Fed Govt 21-day ultimatum to fix health care system

•LUTH workers abandon duties over non-payment of salaries

The Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has
given the Federal Government a 21-day
ultimatum to find solutions to various
challenges confronting the nation’s medical
sector.
The association also gave the government an
ultimatum to pay doctors and other health
workers in public hospitals their outstanding
salaries because of the irregularities in
implementing the centralised Integrated
Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
The ultimatum began yesterday and is expected
to run till September 23.
In a communiqué issued yesterday at the end
of NMA’s National Council Meeting (NEC),
which held from August 25 to September 1 in
Abuja, its President, Dr. Osahon Enabulele, said
the association was willing to support and
advise concerned parties to adhere by the
provisions of the constitution.
“NMA is very prepared to make available its
members who are professionals in various
fields of medicine to constitute a medical
board to resolve the lingering question of the
medical fitness of the Governor and any other
public or political office holder.”
The communiqué, which was also jointly signed
by NMA’s Secretary-General, Dr. Akpufuoma
Pemu, said there is need to address lapses in
the IPPIS to reimburse the three months
outstanding salaries.
“Since the beginning of the implementation of
IPPIS in federal public hospitals, it has greatly
undermined the welfare of doctors, many of
whom have had to endure over three months
of non-payment of salaries due to gross
irregularities in the implementation.
“The NEC, therefore, calls on government to
urgently correct the numerous IPPIS
irregularities within the next 21 days with
effect from September 2 to September 23 or
stop the use of IPPIS as a means of payment of
salaries in public hospitals until the
irregularities are sorted out with a perfect
innocuous system put in place.”
House officers at the Lagos University Teaching
Hospital (LUTH) have begun a week-long work
boycott to protest the non-payment of their
salaries.
Interns at the Physiotherapy, Radiography,
Pharmacy, Dietetics, Medical and Laboratory
Science, Dental Technology and others have
joined the work boycott.
The protesters said their salaries have been
delayed since the beginning of the Integrated
Pay Roll and Personnel Information system
(IPPIS).
In a letter the house officers sent to the Chief
Medical Director (CMD), Prof Akin Osibogun,
they said the delay has caused them great
economic hardship.
“It has become difficult to feed and be at the
workplace with the right frame of mind…
“Upon the expiration of the resolution
contained in the letter attached, the house
officers can no longer be at the workplace
until all accrued salaries and allowances are
paid.”
The letter was copied to the Minister of Health,
the Accountant-General of the Federation, the
Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), the
President of the National Association of
Resident Doctors (NARD), the LUTH branch of
the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) and
the Medical and Dental Consultant Association
of Nigeria.