The Association of Resident Doctors at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria in Kaduna State has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike if their outstanding salaries are not paid by the end of August 2016.
They are also asking the government to address what they referred to as ‘deplorable state of facilities’ at the hospital.
At a meeting held after a peaceful protest on Monday, the President of the Association, Dr Waziri Aliyu, accused the hospital’s management of short-changing doctors of their rightful entitlements and victimising some of their members.
He also expresses displeasure over the poor environmental sanitation at the hospital.
The union said the doctors’ salaries had not been paid in full since 2013.
Marching from one department to another, the group appealed to the management to re-instate their sacked colleagues and immediately commence payment of all outstanding courses and examination allowances, fix the leaking sewages and clear all the grasses among others.
The doctors further claimed that their salaries were not at par with that of their colleagues in other teaching hospitals across Nigeria, a situation they said made them one of the least paid medical workers at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital.
The resident doctors said it was the first time they would be embarking on an industrial action to press their demands.
Pending any last minute resolution with the management, they vowed that nothing short of the management addressing all their demands would deter them from embarking on an indefinite strike at the end of August.
Reacting to the issues and demands raised by the resident doctors, the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Professor Lawal Khalid, attributed the non-payment of their outstanding entitlements to lack of funds.
He appealed to the doctors to shelve the planned strike, assuring them that all outstanding emoluments would be paid to them as soon as funds were available.
