By Timothy Ojo
Lagosians, indeed Nigerians, may be heading to hotter hell in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic as the Nigerian Medical Association(NMA), Lagos Branch, has instructed its members to immediately begin an indefinite strike from 6.00 p.m. on Wednesday.
The declaration of industrial dispute was contained in a joint statement issued in Lagos by its chairman, Dr. Saliu Oseni and secretary, Dr. Ramon Moronkola.
The doctors said their action was imperative following the frequent harassment of healthcare workers by overzealous security agents.
The action, if the government fails to intervene speedily, may worsen the prevalence of the COVID-19 infections in Lagos as the state remains the epicentre of the disease in Nigeria.
As at 2.55p.m., the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, reported on its official website that Lagos State currently has 2,755 cases, with 38 deaths. And that while 2,152 were active cases and remained on admission, 565 had been discharged.
The Lagos NMA strike alert reads: “The Lagos State Branch of the NMA has resolved that it is presently unsafe for its members to continue to provide healthcare services under the present confused arrangement.
“We resolve that all doctors under the auspices of the Nigerian Medical Association in Lagos to proceed on a sit-at-home starting from 6.00 pm today, May 20, indefinitely.
“Until such time when the state government and the Commissioner of Police are clear on how they wish to operationalise the lockdown/restriction of movement directive as it relates to essential service and service providers, including healthcare services and doctors.”
On April 27, President Muhammadu Buhari had exempted health workers, journalists, agriculturists and other essential workers from the restriction of movement between 8 pm and 6 am to forestall the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
However, over 50 health workers were on Tuesday arrested by the police in Lagos who were operating under the instruction of the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu.
“Whereas, the directives of President Muhammadu Buhari through the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, was clear on the exemption of essential workers including doctors and other health workers from the ongoing lockdown/movement restrictions, the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Mr Hakeem Odumosu, has been issuing conflicting directives on social and mainstream media to the effect that essential workers including doctors and other health workers are not exempted.
“As a direct result of the conflicting directives of the government and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, the Lagos State branch of Nigerian Medical Association was inundated yesterday evening with several cases of harassment and intimidation of doctors and other health workers by officers and men of the Police Command in Lagos State.
“The healthcare workers were either resuming duty, returning home, or on-transit to heed an emergency call.
“There was a most disturbing case of an ambulance conveying an injured patient which was prevented from moving to destination, while the attending health workers were harassed and temporarily detained,” they added.