29th September, 2017
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
All public hospitals in Rivers State have been deserted as health workers in the state under the aegies of Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) joined their counterparts in the ongoing nationwide strike.
Announcing the commencement of strike by the Rivers state branch of JOHESU, the branch Chairman, Dr. Chris Mbata said members in the state have no other option than to joint the nationwide strike since that is the only language the government understands.
According to Dr Mbata, the state branch has to join the nationwide strike as directed by the national body.
“The issues we have now is implementation not negotiation. The issues have been there over the years. We have passed the level of negotiation. But I can tell you that nothing will come out of any further negotiation because it had been signed and sealed before now.”
The JOHESU Chairman directed all health workers in the state hospitals in 23 local government areas to sit at home as part of the nationwide strike.
Meanwhile, the JOHESU strike has become a source of worry to patients and their relations who patronize government hospitals.
At the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital this morning health workers and patients lamented the incessant strike in both state and federal hospitals.
A patient who gave her name as Angela Ibekwu said she is troubled that the government cannot take care of those who take care of the sick. She called on government at all levels to answer them so that they can treat the sick as over 99 percent of the sick in Nigeria cannot afford overseas medical treatment.
The joint health workers unions while addressing journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, claimed that all the demands they made since 2012 they started negotiations with the government, including the court judgement on 2013 on CONHESS which was in their favour, had not been implemented.
The National Chairman of JOHESU, Comrade Josiah Joy Biobelemoye told journalists that even when the leadership of the union honoured a letter given to them from the health ministry for a meeting at 2pm on Tuesday, the Minister of Health was nowhere to be found till about 3:30pm they decided to leave the place for another meeting.
“On the 10th May, 2012, agreements were reached on issues concerning our members. Issues upon which we could not agree were referred to the NICN.
“We were in court till August 2013 when judgment was given in favour of JOHESU on skipping of CONHESS 10. As we speak, the Federal Government has not paid arrears of the skipping to our members whereas the resident doctors who were neither a party to the case or are on CONHESS insisted they should skip on CONMESS and arrears paid to them while the original beneficiaries are not paid.
“The Federal Ministry of Health has been frustrating the implementation of the court judgments by introducing same scale promotion.
“For instance when members are promoted from CONHESS 9 to 11 at subsequent promotions from CONHESS 11 to 11. This is unacceptable
“Efforts made through several committees to get the agreements reached implemented were frustrated often by the Federal Ministry of Health who is always protecting the interest of the medical doctors.”
The health workers are demanding adjustment of CONHESS salary as done for CONMESS since January 2014, abolition of scale to scale promotion and payment of outstanding arrears promotion, skipping and relativity
Others are autonomy for teaching and specialist hospitals in the country and other issues, implementation of all court judgments and review of retirement age from 60-65 years as done for the tertiary education sector.
He said that the Teaching Hospitals Act gave autonomy to the various tertiary hospitals as they have their separate Boards of Management different from the governing councils of the universities.
However, the Rivers State government has assured patients that it will do everything possible to ensure that healthcare is served to patients in the state.