Consultant Doctors Suspend National Strike

Barely two weeks after declaring a national strike, the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria has suspended its industrial action.
Members of the association had yesterday, February 25, 2020, withdrawn their services from academic activities in Colleges of Medicine in all public universities across the country.
This was after the expiration of the 21-day ultimatum issued by the association for the National Universities Commission to withdraw its circular referenced NUC/ES/138/VOL.63/52 of December 24, 2019, which made the acquisition of the Ph.D. degree a requirement for career progression for clinical lecturers in Nigerian universities.
President of MDCAN, Prof. Kenneth Ozoilo, who announced the suspension of the strike at a press conference in Jos yesterday, said the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, and other stakeholders had intervened in the matter.
He expressed optimism that the suspension of the strike would create the right ambience for further dialogue and negotiation.
The MDCAN President said, “Following the intervention of the Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, through the Chairman, House Committee on Health and members the House Committees on Health and Tertiary Education, a mediation meeting was held on March 3 and 4, 2020.