FCT resident doctors begin indefinite strike Monday

Doctors under the Association of Resident Doctors, Federal Capital Territory Administration (ARD-FCTA), are set to commence an indefinite strike on Monday following the expiration of their seven-day warning strike.

The association’s congress met on Sunday to review developments, but sources indicated that a complete shutdown of services was the most likely outcome.

A member who spoke in confidence confirmed that the doctors may declare the strike immediately.

The resident doctors had embarked on the warning strike last Monday after months of stalled negotiations with the FCTA.

Their demands include the payment of salary arrears ranging from one to six months for members employed since 2023, the immediate recruitment of additional staff, and the release of the 2025 Medical Residency Training Fund.

They are also pressing for payment of arrears from the 25 to 35 per cent upward review of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure, clear timelines for completing skipping and conversion processes, and the correction of persistent salary deductions and erratic payment patterns.

In addition, the doctors are seeking the conversion of post-Part II Fellows to the Consultant cadre within six months of qualification, alongside timely promotion exercises with full arrears paid.

They also demand the settlement of wage award arrears, outstanding hazard allowance, renovation and proper equipping of FCTA hospitals, as well as payment of salaries owed to newly employed external residents who are currently behind by three to four months.

The one-week warning strike had already disrupted services across FCT hospitals, leaving facilities to operate skeletal services only.

If the indefinite strike goes ahead, healthcare delivery in the capital is expected to come to a standstill.

Frequent strikes have continued to cripple public healthcare in Abuja, exposing long-standing challenges of underfunding, infrastructural decay, manpower shortages, and brain drain.

Patients are often left to bear the heaviest burden, forced to turn to private hospitals where costs are significantly higher.

ARD-FCTA had earlier warned that unless meaningful dialogue was initiated to address their grievances—particularly the acute shortage of staff in district and general hospitals—an indefinite strike would be unavoidable.