Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike has threatened to invoke the “No Work, No Pay” rule on striking resident doctors in the state.

The governor’s warning comes amidst a nationwide strike of resident doctors.

Secretary to the State government, Tammy Wenike Danagogo in a statement issued on Tuesday evening claims the state government does not owe salaries or benefits to resident doctors in the State.

An excerpt of the statement reads; “Whereas the NARD has a right to go on strike, we expect that such should be restricted to Resident Doctors that are directly under the payroll of the Federal Government, particularly as the Rivers State Government does not owe salaries or benefits to resident doctors in the State. 

“We are therefore unable to decipher why Resident Doctors in the State will embark on sympathy strike with their counterparts in the employment of the Federal Government.

“To this end, the Rivers State Government, having reaffirmed its position with respect to the above, will not tolerate further strike actions by Resident Doctors in Rivers State and will be compelled to invoke the “No Work, No Pay” rule on striking house Officers.”

Peoples Gazette had earlier reported that the doctors are protesting the failure of Governor Nyesom Wike’s administration in paying COVID-19 hazard allowances and refusal of the state government to domesticate the Medical Residency Training Act (MRTA) 2017, described as a roadmap for residency training. 

Other issues include the non-implementation of “The wage-adjusted CONMESS 2019”, and “proper placement of resident doctors who have passed their part-1 Exams.”

The association expressed worries that despite abstaining from previous nationwide strikes in 2020 and 2021, the state government remains unappreciative of doctors’ efforts amidst the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed dozens of doctors globally.