Daud Olatunji
Resident doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, Ogun State, have resolved to embark on a total, indefinite and comprehensive strike from midnight on January 12, 2026, over what they described as the Federal Government’s persistent failure to fully implement agreements reached with their national body.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday in Abeokuta, the President of the ARD FMC Abeokuta, Dr. Quadri Olanipekun said the decision was reached at an Emergency General Meeting of the Association of Resident Doctors, FMC Abeokuta (ARD-FMCA), held virtually on Wednesday, January 7, following a review of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) entered into between the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) and the Federal Ministries of Health and Social Welfare, as well as Labour and Employment.
Reading the communique, Dr. Olanipekun said the strike, tagged “No Implementation, No Going Back” (TICS 2.0), was in line with the directive earlier issued by NARD after what they described as “unacceptable delays, ambiguities and outright non-compliance” with agreements covering welfare, remuneration and professional practice.
He said that the association expressed concern over the redeployment of five disengaged resident doctors of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja, to another teaching hospital, a move he said contradicted the recommendations of a committee earlier set up to resolve the matter.
He also lamented the continued delay in transmitting promotion and salary arrears owed to doctors in several institutions to the Budget Office and the Federal Ministry of Finance for payment, as well as the non-implementation of approved professional allowances and failure to capture accrued arrears in the 2026 national budget.
The doctors further decried persistent ambiguities surrounding skipping and entry-level placement, the exclusion of eligible members from specialist allowance payments despite clear directives from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, and delays in the payment of house officers’ salaries, including arrears spanning one to six months.
Other unresolved issues, according to the communiqué, include the continued re-categorisation and delayed issuance of membership certificates by regulatory bodies, prolonged delays in regulating locum engagements and excessive work hours, discontinuation of the collective bargaining agreement process, and failure to reconcile unpaid arrears arising from the 25 and 35 per cent upward review of CONMESS and accoutrement allowances, affecting about 40 per cent of members.
The association also drew attention to what it described as the “worsening state of infrastructure and obsolete equipment” across federal health institutions.
Following exhaustive deliberations, members unanimously resolved to fully comply with the nationwide strike directive, insisting that there would be no exemptions.
They directed all members to hand over patients to consultants before the commencement of the strike, while departments with exceptional or emergency clinical situations were asked to formally notify the association’s leadership for guidance.
An Enforcement and Strike Monitoring Committee is to be constituted to ensure compliance, with punitive measures earlier adopted during the first phase of the strike to be enforced where necessary.
The doctors warned members to refrain from all clinical and administrative duties during the strike and to rely solely on official communication channels to avoid misinformation.
They also announced plans to stage a peaceful protest within the hospital premises on Monday, January 12, should their demands remain unmet by the Federal Government.
While reaffirming their unity and resolve, the resident doctors expressed appreciation to the management of FMC Abeokuta, the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria, the Nigerian Medical Association in Ogun State, and the national leadership of NARD for their support.
The association called on the Federal Government to urgently address the outstanding issues, warning that continued inaction could further strain an already overstretched health system.
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