The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has thrown its weight behind resident doctors at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, who are currently on strike over outstanding welfare and remuneration issues.
NARD, in a solidarity message issued on Friday by its President, Dr Mohammad Usman Suleiman, said the industrial action had entered its seventh day.
The association warned that failure by the relevant authorities to resolve the doctors’ demands could lead to further regional and national industrial action.
The resident doctors had embarked on the strike following unresolved issues including manpower shortages, unpaid minimum wage arrears, unfulfilled allowance commitments and poor working conditions.
According to NARD, the disputes have lingered since last year despite several attempts to resolve them.
The association said the Association of Resident Doctors, LAUTECH Ogbomoso, had about three months ago issued the Oyo State Government a two-week notice to implement its demands before embarking on a five-day warning strike.
The warning strike was later suspended following appeals from the hospital management and its board.
NARD said the doctors subsequently issued another eight-week ultimatum to the government, which elapsed eight days before the latest industrial action began, without the demands being addressed.
“Yet again, the leadership of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors is forced to resort to the painful choice of an industrial action to press home legitimate demands of its members.
“Today is day seven of the industrial action embarked upon by our colleagues in LAUTECH Ogbomoso. The issues under dispute did not start today; it has been lingering since last year,” Suleiman said.
The demands include payment of Medical Residency Training Funds, payment of state minimum wage arrears implemented from January 2025, implementation of the corrected Professional Allowances Table, implementation of the new policy on excess workload and work-hour regulation, and payment of upgrade arrears to affected doctors.
Suleiman said the first four demands fell directly under the responsibility of the Oyo State Government, while the hospital management was responsible for the payment of upgrade arrears.
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He described the failure to implement the demands as a leadership failure, warning that continued inaction could have consequences for healthcare delivery in the state.
NARD called for urgent intervention to resolve the dispute and prevent the ongoing industrial action from escalating into wider regional or nationwide action.
