National Industrial Court, Abuja has on Monday ordered striking members of Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) and the federal government to suspend all forms of hostilities.
The doctors went on strike on August 1 to protest against inadequate allowances, irregular payment of salaries, among others.
Read Also: Industrial Court Refuses To Stop Resident Doctors’ Strike
NIC last Thursday initial rejected a request to order Nigerian resident doctors to suspend their 19-day-old nationwide strike.
The judge, John Targema, in rejecting the ex parte application by a non-governmental organisation, Rights for All International, said he would not issue such an order behind the back of the doctors and other parties sued in the suit.
The judge said issuing “a restraining order” against the doctors to stop the strike without hearing them would be in breach of their right to fair hearing.
However in his ruling on Monday, Justice John Targema, directed all parties in the suit to suspend all forms of hostilities and return to status quo pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
He said;
Having looked especially on the affidavit of extreme urgency, the grounds of the application, the affidavit in support of same and arguments of counsel for the applicant. I also weighed the submissions and arguments of counsel on the law as it stands on this application.
It is hereby ordered that claimant/applicant and the defendant/respondent suspend all forms of hostilities forthwith pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
The judge ordered that a hearing notice and other processes should be served on the defendant, including the originating summons.
Targema adjourned the matter to September 15 for a hearing of the motion on notice and/or any other pending application on its merit.
Nigerian government took the legal action against NARD after efforts to reach a resolution failed. It asked the Industrial court to restrain the doctors from continuing with the strike.
NARD claimed that one of its reasons for the strike was due to the failure of the government to meet its demands after they entered a memorandum of action in 2014.
One of the demands was for the withdrawal of the circular by the Head of Service removing House Officers from the scheme of service.
The applicants, on their part in their affidavit in support of motion ex-parte, had stated that the subject matter before the court was of serious urgency given its nature which had to do with life and death.
In addition, the affidavit said that the strike action by the respondent which had been ongoing for more than two weeks was causing untold suffering on the citizenry.
The untold suffering according to the affidavit is “accounting for numerous deaths of persons who could not access the medical services provided by the respondent.”
