16th June, 2010
The Minister of Health, Prof. Onyenbuchi Chukwu, on Tuesday warned that he would dissuade the National Association of Resident Doctors
(NARD) from embarking on its planned strike.
The minister made the declaration in Abuja at a meeting with the executive members of the association in his office.
“I promise you that if you go on strike because of salary arrears, l won’t stop you,” he said.
Chukwu said that as responsible citizens, the doctors should appreciate the efforts of the Federal Government, which had agreed to pay enhanced salaries to health workers by the end of June.
He said that the government had also agreed to pay all the salary arrears by October, adding that there was, therefore, no justification for NARD to call for a strike.
The minister said that it would be logical for NARD to go on strike if it discovered that by June 30, the salaries were not paid into its members’ accounts.
The President of NARD, Dr John Aremu, however, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) after the meeting that the association was not moved by the minister’s reaction.
He underscored the association’s determination to embark on the strike on June 22.