APPREHENSION AS DOCTORS AT NEUROPSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL, YABA LAGOS THREATENS ONE WEEK WARNING STRIKE

Tesident doctors at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Yaba, Lagos State, have announced plans to embark on a one-week warning strike in protest over poor welfare and months of unpaid salaries.

Operating under the umbrella of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), the doctors disclosed their decision in a communiqué released on Friday.

The statement was jointly signed by the association’s President, Dr. Babarinsa O. A., and Secretary, Dr. Disu K. B.

The ARD described the situation as “intolerable,” revealing that some newly recruited resident doctors had worked for six months without receiving any remuneration.

They warned that if the backlog of salaries was not cleared by the end of July 2025, they would have no choice but to commence an indefinite industrial action.

The doctors frowned at what they described as the “now-established pattern of newly employed residents having to work for five to six months before receiving their first salaries”.

This, they said, was deemed unacceptable for the welfare of doctors and detrimental to clinical practice.

The communiqué read in part, “The congress observed with despair that the June salary window had closed without the new residents receiving their first salaries, after working for five months.

“The congress expressed disappointment that management has allowed this issue to persist for several years, despite repeated engagements by the association aimed at finding a lasting solution, especially as this situation is not observed in many other training institutions.

“The Congress resolved that the association shall embark on a one-week warning strike commencing 8 am on Monday, July 7, 2025, and will proceed on an indefinite strike should the newly employed residents not be paid by the end of July 2025.”

A few months ago, SaharaReporters reported that Dr Olugbenga Owoeye, admitted to diverting funds meant for patients’ meals and medication to settle electricity and diesel bills.

In audio recordings exclusively obtained by SaharaReporters, Owoeye is heard justifying the controversial practice during a recent staff meeting, citing skyrocketing electricity bills and a lack of sufficient funding from the Nigerian Government as the rationale behind the move.

He had said:  “Our NEPA (electricity) bills in this hospital is between N35 million to N40 million every month. Diesel is about N18 million monthly. That is N58 million. And those who remove the dead people and other stuff, let’s say about N2 million to N3 million. And they [the government] are giving us N23 million to manage and run the hospital. So how will we use this N23 million to pay NEPA bills of N40 million, N18 million of diesel?”

He continued, narrating how electricity was disconnected at the facility and how he had to plead with the Federal Ministry of Health in Abuja. “The last time they cut our light, I ran to Abuja to go and meet the Permanent Secretary. I asked what can you do for me in the ministry to help me pay the N40 million bills. The woman told me they have also cut the light of the federal ministry… that everybody is managing themselves.”

Owoeye then revealed how the hospital management resorted to sourcing funds internally. “We put our head together… The money we were able to make from the system and they [the power company] installed our light. That was how we stopped having issue with light… The balance on how we paid it — it is from the little, little money that we get from the gains of drugs, gains from patients’ foods, that we combine and add to that money to pay these bills.”

Hospital sources told SaharaReporters that the admission has not gone down well with staff members, many of whom had already been grumbling over deteriorating working conditions, poor patient care, and what they describe as years of opaque financial dealings by the MD.

“Since the last publication, he has been holding meetings with staff members in order to prevent imminent outright protests against him,” said a staff member who requested anonymity.

“In one of those meetings, he claimed that the reason for the lack of food and medications for patients was that he had to use patients’ food and medication money to pay the exorbitant electricity bills.”

Despite Owoeye’s claim that no money was released for capital projects in 2024 and none so far in 2025, available documents reveal otherwise.

Between the third quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025, the Federal Ministry of Finance released a staggering N686million to the hospital.