By Ikeugonna Eleke
Medical doctors in Anambra State have suspended an indefinite strike action they declared last Thursday, after three days into the action.
The doctors under the aegis of, the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), had declared the strike following the kidnap of one of their colleagues.
The declaration was not an impromptu thing as the association had first issued a warning upon the kidnap of Dr Steven Ezeh, a private practitioner in Ihiala, who is the Managing Director and
Chief Medical Director of Vera Clinic, Ihiala. He was abducted at his residence in Umunnamehi Village, Ihiala, Ihiala Local Government Area, on August 15, 2024.
NMA, had in an emergency general meeting on Monday, a day after the incident, issued a 48-hour ultimatum for the release of Ezeh or they would withdraw their services across the state afterwards.
He had said: ‘The kidnappers had requested 40 million ransom at first and subsequently N30 million within 24 hours. A 48-hour ultimatum is hereby given to the
Anambra State Government to secure the immediate release of Dr Ezeh.
‘If at the expiration of the above timeline, our member’s release is not secured, all the doctors in Anambra State under the aegis of NMA, Anambra will down tools until our member is released.
‘An emergency meeting will be convened within the next 48 hours to review the progress made so far,’ he had said
Acting true to their threats, the association met on Thursday and directed members to withdraw clinical services in all private and public hospitals in the state with immediate effect.
Okam and Obieli, in a further press statement said: ‘NMA Anambra hereby directs all doctors in the state to forthwith withdraw clinical services in all federal, state, private, mission, institutional and corporate hospitals in the state until our member is released.
‘That NMA Anambra will painstakingly monitor compliance with the above directive through her ”Strike Monitoring Team” and that defaulting hospitals and members will be blacklisted/penalised in line with Congress resolutions.
‘That Anambra State Government should activate all necessary security agencies and instruments at its disposal to ensure timely and unconditional release of our abducted member.
‘NMA Anambra State is not oblivious of the hardship this withdrawal of services will cause the good people of Anambra, however we appeal to the State Government to expedite action towards securing the release of our colleague so as to restore normalcy to the health system.
‘NMA, Anambra leadership, will continue to brainstorm and work together with all relevant government agencies to collectively achieve a healthy and secure populace,’ the statement said.
This was the point where the torment for sick people in the state started. A trader, Mrs Onyekachi Ugwueze, who took her mother to Regina Caeli Hospital for treatment on Friday, August 23, lamented that there were no services from doctors.
‘We just wasted our time today and my mother is very sick. At some point, someone directed that we should take her to a private hospital, but I was surprised that as we made to leave, we received information that even private
hospitals were not open. Friday was a horrible day for us. We only used the advice of some experts to do self-medication on our mother.’
For the Ugwueze’s, self-medication through expert advice may have worked for them, but who knows how many other people may have lost their lives because of inability to access quality healthcare?
In the same Regina Caeli Hospital, some patients who were due for attention for eye check in a free medical outreach programme which was to be organized for the patients, were disappointed as the programme was later cancelled until further notice.
A notice to that effect, which was circulated, read: “The free eye outreach will not hold till further notice! This is due to the unforeseen medical strike that started today, 23/08/2. All inconveniences are highly regretted”.
Reprieve however came on Sunday, August 25, when MMA announced the release of Dr Ezeh and subsequent suspension of the strike.
Okam and Obiaeli, as Chairman and Secretary, respectively, in another press statement, said: “The total and indefinite strike action called by NMA, Anambra Branch, to protest the kidnap of our member, Dr Stephen Ezeh, is hereby called off following his release.
“Clinical services resume 08:00 hours Sunday August 25. We appreciate the good people of Anambra for bearing with us through these trying times while we earnestly pray that this tribulation will not arise again.
“We appreciate our colleagues for their solidarity and doggedness in the face of the challenges facing the sector, especially insecurity, and urge them to remain resolute and committed towards delivering healthcare to Anambra people”.
The frequency of strike actions by professionals in Anambra State as a result of insecurity, resulting in the kidnap of their members, have become high, fueling the suspicion that insecurity, may one day cripple every sector of the state, if kidnappers seize professionals from all critical and relevant sectors at the same time.
This is because in May this year, lawyers under the aegis of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, had also crippled the justice delivery sector by declaring a strike action because of the kidnap of their member.
The lawyers embarked on a
one-day boycott of courts to press home their demand for release of their colleague abducted by gunmen before they also declared an indefinite strike like MMA.
Their member, Mr. Chukwubuikem Azoro, who is the Secretary of NBA, Idemili Branch, had been kidnapped by gunmen at Abagana, Njikoka Local Government Area around 8:30 pm one Saturday and had not been released.
Mr. Chukwubuikem Obianyo, the Idemili Branch Publicity Secretary of NBA revealed that Azoro’s captors had demanded a ransom for his release, although he did not state the amount.
Reacting to the development, the lawyers said their decision to boycott courts was to enable them to pursue the immediate release of Azoro.
The Chairman of the Committee of Chairmen and Secretaries of NBA branches in Anambra State, Mr. I.C. Nsofor, said the state wide boycott was to support a similar action already taken by the Idemili Branch of NBA.
A statement issued by the lawyers read in part: “In response to this distressing situation, the members of the Idemili Branch have unanimously resolved to take a stand against such criminal acts.
“Therefore, all members of the NBA, Idemili Branch, shall be boycotting appearances in all courts within and outside our jurisdiction.
“Additionally, members of Idemili Branch pledge to abstain from representing individuals charged with kidnapping or armed robbery until further notice.”
Though many have praised Soludo for his initial war against criminals masquerading as freedom fighters, who had initially taken over some local government areas, others are of the view that he has relapsed in his efforts, leading to insecurity in the state. Today, cultism, kidnapping, robbery and other violent crimes, have become rife in Anambra State.
Mrs Ugwueze, who lamented the fate of her mother within the three days of the strike by medical doctors, said: ‘We pray that there will not be a day when doctors, lawyers, teachers, traders and other essential service providers, will be protesting the kidnap of their colleagues at the same time. That will leave us with no option than to leave Anambra.’
She called for a total declaration of a state of emergency on security in Anambra State by the Soludo-led Government.
