MHWUN urges Gov. Ododo to recruit more health workers in Kogi

By Mark Akudu, Kogi

The Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN) has appealed to the Kogi state government for recruitment of health workers into the various hospitals and primary health care centres in the state to ameliorate the acute shortage of manpower in the health sector.

The Chairman of Kogi State Chapter of MHWUN Comrade Amari Gabriel made the appeal on Wednesday in Lokoja during the 8th Quadrennial State Delegate Conference of the union with the theme: “Towards Strengthening Trade Unions for Development”.

He said most hospitals in the state have suffered dirt from medical health workers, lamenting that some primary health centres in the school can not boast of two or more staff to attend to the health needs of the people at the grassroot.

The Chairman of the union who also seeks for the harmonization of health workers salaries to end disparity in the salaries of the state health workers, said a situation where health workers at the same level earned different salaries does not speak well for the union.

While appealing to the state government for the harmonization of health workers salaries in the state, the union leader urged the government to set up an implementation committee of the seventy thousand naira national minimum wage without further delay.

He solicited for the training and retraining of health workers through workshops to update their knowledge with the current global practices and seek for the domestication of the approved five years extension of health workers as endorsed by the council of establishment.

The national president of the union Kabiru Ado Sani in his speech charged the leadership of the union at the state councils to embrace the spirit of accountability, probity and quality service to members in order to move the union to a greater height.

Ado Sani who was represented by the Adeka Abdullahi the returning officer of the conference warned that the national leadership of the union would not hesitate to take drastic actions against any state council that indulge in actions that would smear the good image of the union, noting that the national body is committed to reward state council that distinguished themselves in the service of the union.

The national president therefore urged the new executive of Kogi state council MHWUN to carry along members of the union in the discharge of their duties.

Kogi state governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo who declared the conference open, said his administration since its inception has been workers friendly, assuring that the government would continue to prioritize welfare of workers and other citizens in the state.

Represented by the Special Adviser to the state governor on labour matters Comrade Onuh Edoka promised to look into all the demands of the union.