The Chief Medical Director (CMD) Federal Teaching Hospital Lokoja Dr. Olatunde Alabi has said that contrary to recent media reports, the hospital is still up and doing and rendering 24-hour service to the general public with all its facilities and manpower intact.
The hospital’s Resident doctors had engaged in a protest against the management’s alleged high-handedness and non recruitment of staff, saying the hospital has become comatose.
But at a stakeholders meeting on Tuesday -yesterday, February 4 – the CMD took time to explain the progress of the hospital under his leadership and said only a few “disgruntled elements” within the rank of the Resident doctors who flagrantly refused to obey the rules and regulations of the hospital were the ones causing crisis at the hospital.
Alabi, who said contrary to the claims that the hospital can only boast of 42 doctors, the hospital has, in reality, a total of 282 doctors still in the service of the teaching hospital with 86 Consultants who are specialists in different fields.
A breakdown of doctors in the hospital, Dr Alabi further explained, shows that consultants alone are 86, while visiting doctors in various fields that are lacking in the hospital are seven, Resident Doctors 49, medical doctors 42 and 43 house officers, stressing that the claims by Association of Resident Doctors that the hospital has only 43 doctors is a calculated attempt to tarnish and smear the good image of the hospital.
“I wonder where and how they came about such negative and unfair information. This is an embarrassment to the hospital,” Alabi said.
“I don’t have any problem with any union in the hospital except those who are not willing to follow the rules and regulations of the civil service and this category of our staff are few members of the Association of Resident Doctors who are not willing to be corrected.”
Speaking on the claim that the management of the hospital refused to employ doctors and other health workers since 2012 despite government waiver to do so, the Chief Medical Director explained that in 2013 and 2022 there were recruitments of health workers including doctors to fill the various vacant positions in the hospital.
“We were recruiting resident doctors regularly before the government policy on IPPIS came and with that policy there is nothing we can do again even when some resident doctors moved away as a result of “Japa” syndrome which also affected virtually all hospitals across the country.
“On the issue of allowances and arrears, I can say categorically that I am not owing any staff monthly salary, but the allowances that are due to staff and it is our responsibility as management we don’t delay such allowance. Hazard allowances are paid by the federal government through IPPIS,” he stated
In his remarks, the controller labour, Kogi State Mr Labija John expressed dissatisfaction at the media altercation between the Association of Resident Doctors and the management, calling for dialogue to resolve issues internally.
While warning unions not to fight with their management, the labour leader urged the management of the Federal Teaching Hospital Lokoja to do the needful by ensuring peace, unity and harmonious working relationship between staff and the management of the hospital.
Also in his remarks the Executive Director,
Conscience for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution (CHRCR), Comrade Idris Abdul Miliki charged the management and the unions to always use dialogue to resolve any conflict in the hospital rather than allow things to go bad.
He said having been admitted into the hospital, he can testify that the hospital is one of the best in terms of service and facilities in the north central zone and urged the union and management to close ranks and work together for the good of the society.
