Today marks day one of the seven-day nationwide strike embarked on by the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD). The decision was made on Sunday 25th August 2024 at an Emergency National Executive Council meeting and was set to begin at midnight Monday 26th August 2024. The strike was declared over the abduction of Dr. Ganiyat Popoola, a registrar of the Ophthalmology department at the National Eye Centre, Kaduna, who has been in captivity for eight months.
The strike was declared to be a total one. Hence, there will be no form of care, not even emergencies cases will be attended to by the striking doctors. Clinics for the next seven days will now be run by consultants. After the warning strike, a review is expected to assess the actions taken by the government to secure the release of the abducted doctor.
The doctor was said to have been abducted on 27 December 2024 alongside her husband and nephew. However, her husband was released in March after payment of a ransom but Dr. Ganiyat and her nephew remain in the custody of their captors. It is for this reason the NARD has taken this course of action to get the government to listen to their demands and intervene in the release of their abducted colleague.
Weeks ago, members of the NARD commenced a nationwide protest demanding the immediate release of their colleague. Their demands fell on deaf ears. It is therefore hoped that the warning strike yields its desired result.
