Ondo doctors give Aiyedatiwa eight-day ultimatum over welfare issues

Doctors in Ondo State, under the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), have issued an eight-day ultimatum to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, demanding urgent action on unpaid allowances and improved working conditions.

In a statement, the state NMA Chairman, Dr Muyiwa Alonge, said the government had failed to implement two key Federal Government circulars affecting doctors’ salaries and welfare, despite similar measures already being adopted in other states.

The circulars include the consequential salary adjustment approved in November 2025 and the accoutrement allowance introduced in July 2025.

Alonge also lamented the non-payment of 2024 promotion allowances and the failure to recruit new doctors to replace those who have left the system.

He noted that the ongoing “japa” trend has worsened manpower shortages, leaving the remaining doctors overwhelmed and overworked.

According to him, many doctors now handle the workload of several colleagues, often working under difficult conditions, with inadequate or obsolete equipment in poorly maintained health facilities.

He added that repeated efforts by the association to engage the government—including letters and meetings with top officials—had yielded no tangible results.

The association is demanding immediate implementation of the salary adjustments, payment of all arrears and outstanding allowances, and urgent recruitment of healthcare workers to ease the burden on existing staff.

NMA warned that failure to meet these demands by April 28, 2026, would force the union to convene an emergency congress to decide on its next course of action, which could include a strike.

While expressing reluctance to embark on industrial action, the association said the current state of the health sector is already affecting service delivery and patient care.

It urged the state government to act swiftly to address the concerns and prevent further deterioration of the healthcare system.