The federal government has denied approval for a bill by the National Assembly seeking to restrict the migration of Nigerian doctors to foreign countries.
The bill according to its sponsor is intended to curtail the mass exodus of medical practitioners from the country.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, while speaking with newsmen shortly after the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the State House, Abuja.
According to Ngige, the bill is not in consonance with the extant Labour laws.
This is as he reacted to a threat by resident doctors to embark on a five-day warning strike over perceived attempts to ground medical and dental graduates nationwide for five years before being granted a practising licence.
The bill sponsored by a member of the House of Representatives from Lagos State, Ganiyu Johnson is tittled: “A Bill for an Act to amend the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act, Cap. M379, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 to mandate any Nigeria-trained medical or dental practitioner to practise in Nigeria for a minimum of five years before being granted a full licence by the Council to make quality health services available to Nigeria; and for related matters.”
However Reacting to the development, the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors announced plans to embark on a five-day warning strike, vowing to resist any guise to “enslave” Nigerian medical doctors.
The association also demanded an immediate increment in the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure to the tune of 200 per cent of the current gross salaries of doctors, the immediate implementation of CONMESS, domestication of the Medical Residency Training Act, and review of hazard allowance by all the state governments as well as private tertiary health institutions where any form of residency training is done; among others.
According to NMA, “the Act provides that the worker who is injured or had an accident or contracted a disease or disabled or dead in the course of work should be compensated, remunerated and even the family; pay something when the man is no longer there.
“It didn’t make provision for some of the children to be schooled or educated, up to the age of 21.
“So today is a good day for Nigerian workers because the decent work agenda that is contained in Convention 102 of the ILO has a major branch on what they call workers’ protection in the course of work, NMA added.