Medical lecturers give FG 21 days to meet demands

The Nigerian Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA), University of Ilorin Branch, has backed the national body's decision to give the federal government a new 21-day ultimatum.

The branch showed its support in a statement released on Saturday in Ilorin. The communiqué was signed by Branch Chairman Mohammed Abdulkadir and Secretary Adebayo Oloko.

The statement said the decision was made after Congress looked into the ongoing issues affecting its members and the resolutions from the Emergency National Executive Council (NEC) of NAMDA.

It noted that the 21-day ultimatum aims to tackle the long-standing problems of medical and dental academics in Nigeria. The deadline for this ultimatum is set for August 31.

The branch expressed disappointment over what it called the government's slow response and lack of urgency in finalizing talks and settling the issues facing medical and dental academics in universities and teaching hospitals.

The statement highlighted major concerns of the association, including delays in negotiations with NAMDA and putting agreed resolutions into action.

"There is poor prioritization of medical and dental education, training, and research, despite Nigeria's serious shortage of doctors and dentists.

"We also see a brain drain of trained medical professionals and academics to other countries, which affects both undergraduate and postgraduate training and healthcare delivery," it said.

The association also pointed out issues with the welfare and working conditions of medical and dental academics. It said these must be improved to keep staff and maintain the quality of medical education.

"Members have shown a lot of patience and restraint to keep stability in the university system and protect students' education," the communiqué stated.

The branch recognized the efforts made by the Department of State Services and other stakeholders. However, it insisted that these efforts must lead to "concrete, measurable, and time-bound outcomes."

The union urged the federal government and relevant authorities to use the 21-day period to finalize negotiations and address the outstanding issues.

It warned that if this does not happen, the association will have no choice but to follow directives from the national leadership.

"We urge students, parents, the public, and other stakeholders to push the government to quickly resolve these issues and prevent disruptions to medical education, research, and healthcare services," it added.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that NAMDA is an official academic trade union for medical and dental lecturers in Nigerian public universities and teaching hospitals.