That Rivers NMA Strike

Just as the five-day warning strike embarked upon by the national body of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) to press home its demands enters the third day today, the Rivers State branch of the association recently declared that its members would proceed on strike without notification if any of its members is kidnapped again.

Viewed against the backdrop of the current warning strike by the NMA which is, regrettably, taking its toll on the citizenry as cases of casualties in the hospitals are reportedly increasing by the day, the threat by the Rivers NMA to down tools if any of its members is abducted is unacceptable as it is misplaced.

There is no gainsaying the fact that kidnapping has, sadly enough, become a recurring decimal and something of a hydra-headed monster which government, through its security agencies, has been striving assiduously to nip in the bud.

Condemnable as the security situation is, this age has had the misfortune of clergymen, teachers, contractors and even children being kidnapped. At such times, none of them has embarked on strike of any sort as a show of anger against the act.

Even, the rich and influential in the society, including other professionals like lawyers, journalists, engineers have been victims of kidnapping. Yet they have not abandoned their onerous responsibilities to the society because any of its members was kidnapped. And in all known or reported cases, efforts have been intensified by security agencies to track down the perpetrators of the act.

Kidnapping is indeed a real problem across the globe. So worrisome has the problem been that some state governments have gone the extra mile to check the phenomenon. Governments of Abia and Anambra States, for instance, have taken extreme policies that run counter to human principles in what can be seen as desperate moves to get rid of it. But these kidnap kingpins have to be deterred. And the only way is to go all out and bring the culprits to justice to make the society safer for everyone.

It is against this backdrop that the Rivers NMA strike threat becomes unacceptable. Painful as the repeated kidnap of their members can be, the NMA cannot endanger the lives of Rivers people by resorting to strike action because a member was kidnapped.

Perhaps, they should also be reminded that there exists laws in our statute books guiding labour relations that their threat runs counter to.

We feel sad that despite the level of education of the populace, people easily take the laws into their hand. Infact, that strike has become the first and last tool in the hands of every union is condemnable.

As it is, it behoves the Rivers NMA to work with government on what can be done to safeguard members through the building of more doctors’ residence within the hospital premises among others.

While The Tide insists that security is the business of everyone, we expect government and security agencies to come up with new and effective strategies to protect everyone, and especially the doctors whose duty is to save lives.

The Rivers NMA must strictly abide by its members’ Hippocratic oath to save lives first and not pour their anger on helpless patients as they are not the kidnappers.

True, and rightly of course, it is the responsibility of the NMA, just like every other association, to protect the interests of its members and ensure their safety, especially when their lives are under threat as in this case.

However, extreme caution ought to be exercised in taking decisions that would ostensibly have multiplier effect on the people.

It is on this note that The Tide urges the NMA to rethink its threat to embark on strike.