By ADEROGBA GEORGE

The North-Central caucus of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), on Friday, demanded the immediate reinstatement of their colleagues sacked from the Federal Teaching Hospital (FTH), Lokoja, Kogi.

The caucus leader, Dr. Fanen Dogoh at a news conference in Abuja said the affected doctors were dismissed over allegations of unauthorised protest and union activities, describing the action as unjust.

Dogoh said the North-Central caucus was aware that several committees had been constituted to review the matter, all of which reportedly recommended the reinstatement of the affected doctors.

He noted, however, that in spite these recommendations and a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Federal Government and the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) during their last meeting, the government had failed to act.

According to him, the caucus was also concerned about unpaid allowances and arrears owed resident doctors across several federal institutions.

He specifically cited resident doctors at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, Benue State, who are reportedly owed 18 months’ arrears and other allowances, as well as their counterparts in Ilorin, Kwara State.

Dogoh urged the Federal Government to urgently address all the issues raised during its engagement with NARD, warning that failure to do so could lead to a total shutdown of resident doctors’ services nationwide.

He said the association would commence a strike on Monday, Jan. 12, if the government failed to honour the MoU.

“Government must look into these issues and resolve them. These are some of the fundamental reasons why we are planning a strike.

“Another critical issue is payment at the entry point of doctors. Government must also respect the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which has remained stalled and requires urgent resumption,” he said.

Dogoh further said that some outstanding allowances and arrears had not been captured in the 2026 budget, describing this as a clear sign of neglect.

He warned that continued inaction could result in the country losing a significant number of its medical workforce.

Also speaking, Dr. Kwarshak Kelvin, Vice President II of NARD, called on the Federal Government to urgently address the welfare concerns of resident doctors or risk a total shutdown of the health system.

Kelvin said he was uncertain whether accurate information about doctors’ welfare was reaching President Bola Tinubu and appealed to him to intervene promptly.

He also urged the Minister of Health and Social Welfare to transmit promotion arrears for doctors in federal hospitals to the appropriate authorities.

“The Minister of Health was expected to transmit promotion letters to the Budget Office and the Ministry of Finance for payment or inclusion in the budget. Unfortunately, that has not been done,” he said.

Kelvin noted that although discussions were ongoing, delays had stalled the entire process.

He also raised concerns over the professional allowance table released in November 2025, which took effect from June 2024.

“The implementation was supposed to begin in January 2026. That means we are already looking at about 18 months of arrears.

“However, government has not written to the Budget Office for this to be captured in the 2026 budget, nor has implementation commenced. This effectively means the process has been halted,” he said. (NAN)

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