By ADEROGBA GEORGE/HAUWA SULYMAN

The FCT chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) on Thursday staged a protest in Abuja.

The protest was over the alleged shutdown of Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) across the six area councils of the Federal Capital Territory.

Their demands include the immediate reopening of PHCs, implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage, and payment of outstanding arrears and allowances.

The protest also Included members of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

It was In response to the ongoing health crisis caused by the prolonged closure of more than 270 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) across the six area councils in the FCT.

Speaking during the protest, Mr Jama Medan, Chairman of NANNM-FCT, lamented the deteriorating health situation, stating that Nigeria ranked second globally in maternal and child mortality rates.

He warned that continued closure of PHCs could worsen the crisis.

“We have less than 130 nurses and midwives manning these centres. Women and children are dying because the facilities have been shut for over a month.

“There’s a gross shortage of manpower, and no one in government is addressing the issue,” Medan said.

He alleged that in spite of the release of more than N4.1 billion by the FCT Minister to address the crisis, area council chairmen had refused to pay entitlements.

These entitlements, he said include hazard and uniform allowances for nurses and other health workers.

Medan also expressed concern over the disruption of a scheduled nationwide polio vaccination campaign in the FCT due to the shutdown, warning that the territory risked new cases of the disease.

In solidarity, NUT FCT Chairman, Mr Abdullahi Shafa, condemned the non-payment of minimum wage to primary school teachers, noting that they had been on strike for more than a month.

He called on the FCT Minister, Mr Nyesom Wike, to intervene urgently to avoid a total collapse of the education system in the area councils.

The NLC also threatened to join the protest if the minister failed to act on the workers’ demands within a week.

Responding on behalf of the Minister, Dr Hayyo Danlami, Mandate Secretary of the FCT Education Secretariat, promised to deliver the protesters’ letter to the minister and assured them that their concerns would be addressed. (NAN)