The Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) has given the Federal Government a 21-day ultimatum, urging swift action to review and implement the recently revised Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) in accordance with the agreement reached with the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).
The association of consultants underlined that the government’s released circular solely addressed the percentage increase in the basic salary component, overlooking its application to both the basic salary and all allowances except hazard allowance.
This oversight, they noted, has resulted in the exclusion of clinical lecturers (honorary consultants) from the benefits of the revision.
The association placed additional emphasis on the necessity for any salary increment to account for the impacts of fuel subsidy removal and the prevailing high inflation rate.
In an official statement endorsed by Victor Makanjuola, the president of MDCAN, the association urgently called for the resolution of matters with the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) to reestablish regular operations in government hospitals, ensuring efficient healthcare delivery.
The statement, which followed an extraordinary meeting of MDCAN’s National Executive Council (NEC), provided a clear outline of the association’s demands.
It read: “We demand the immediate review of the newly revised CONMESS circular and issuance of a new circular that would reflect the agreed percentage on both the Basic Salary and other allowances, apart from hazard allowance. This will ensure that the Clinical Lecturers (Honorary Consultants) would benefit from the upward review.
“We call for the correction of the error of commencement of the implementation of the upward review of CONMESS from 1st June 2023 to 1st January 2023.
“We demand that the upward review of the CONMESS should take into consideration the impacts of the fuel subsidy removal and the high inflationary trend that is currently being experienced.
“We demand the immediate implementation and circularization of the agreed modalities for correcting the shortfalls in remunerations of Clinical Lecturers (Honorary Consultants).
“We appeal for the universal applicability of CONMESS to all Medical and Dental doctors, particularly those in public universities.
“The attention of the Government is once again called to the impact of brain drain in the health sector, which is contributing to burnout among our members and inadequate healthcare workforce to cater to the health of Nigerians. We, therefore, demand the immediate implementation of the upward review of age retirement to 70 years for Consultants and 65 years for other Health workers, as an immediate measure to bridge the ongoing massive brain drain.
“The NEC hopes that all these issues will be satisfactorily resolved within the next 21 days, failing which it can no longer guarantee the present relative industrial harmony within the Government hospitals and our Medical Schools.”
