Resident Doctors to Resume Suspended Strike on January 12, Citing Unmet Demands

The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has declared it will resume its “total, indefinite, and comprehensive” strike on January 12, 2026, marking a significant escalation in its ongoing dispute with the Federal Government. This decision follows the government’s failure to fully implement resolutions agreed upon when the previous 29-day strike was suspended in late November 2025.

The announcement was made via a statement from NARD’s National Executive Council (E-NEC) after an emergency virtual meeting. The resumption, ominously tagged “TICS 2.0: No Implementation, No Going Back,” is set to commence at midnight on January 12. [[PEAI_MEDIA_X]]

Why the Strike is Resuming: A Breakdown of Core Demands

The association has outlined a list of “minimum demands” that must be met before any future suspension can be considered. These are not new requests but longstanding issues that have crippled morale and the healthcare system:

• Reinstatement & Payment Arrears: Immediate reinstatement of five resident doctors disengaged from the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja, and payment of all outstanding promotion and salary arrears. Such disengagements often occur without due process, creating job insecurity.
• Allowance Implementation: Full implementation of the revised Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF) and other professional allowances, with arrears captured in the 2026 budget. These funds are critical for training and research.
• Clarification on Career Progression: Official clarification from the Federal Ministry of Health on “skipping” (correct placement on the salary scale after exams) and entry-level placement issues. Ambiguity here leads to significant underpayment for years.
• Specialist Allowance & House Officers’ Pay: Re-introduction of the specialist allowance and resolution of chronic salary delays for house officers (newly graduated doctors in their mandatory internship year).
• Certification & Working Conditions: Streamlined re-categorization and issuance of membership certificates by the National Postgraduate Medical College and the commencement of committees to regulate locum work and excessive work hours—a major factor in burnout and medical errors.
• Collective Bargaining: Resumption and conclusion of the stalled Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) process, which is the formal mechanism for negotiating wages and conditions.

A Coordinated Escalation: From Local Protests to National Action

This strike resumption will be accompanied by a phased protest strategy, indicating a move beyond service withdrawal to public mobilization:

1. Centre-Based Demonstrations (Jan. 12-16): Protests at NARD’s 91 accredited teaching hospital centres across the country.
2. Regional Protests: Coordinated actions led by zonal caucus leaders.
3. Nationwide Protest: A final large-scale demonstration organized by the National Officers’ Committee.

The one-week window before the strike is designed for local chapters to hold congress meetings, brief the media, and notify security agencies—a procedural step that also serves to maximize public awareness and pressure. [[PEAI_MEDIA_X]]

Context: A Cycle of Breakdowns and Short-Term Fixes

This impending action is part of a destructive cycle in Nigeria’s health sector. NARD suspended a previous strike on November 29, 2025, after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government, granting a four-week implementation window. The failure to honor that MoU has eroded trust and made doctors skeptical of future agreements. The earlier strike, which lasted 29 days, severely disrupted services in tertiary hospitals nationwide, highlighting the system’s fragility when its core clinical workforce—resident doctors—withdraws labor.

The NARD leadership has expressed appreciation for its members’ “patience and resilience” while vowing to intensify stakeholder engagements. However, the clear message is that patience has run out. The coming days will test the government’s willingness to address these systemic issues versus applying another temporary fix. For patients and the public, the announcement signals likely severe disruptions to non-emergency care at major hospitals starting January 12, underscoring the human cost of this protracted industrial dispute.

Edited by Vivian Ihechu

Source link