Why Enugu Doctors Are Staying On Duty Amid National Strike — NMA

While resident doctors across Nigeria have downed tools over poor remuneration and welfare concerns, their counterparts in Enugu are keeping hospital doors open and their reason is simple: good governance pays.

The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Enugu State chapter, says it has no justification to join the nationwide strike declared by the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), given the state government’s exceptional record in the welfare and motivation of health workers.

Speaking at a press conference in Enugu to mark the 2025 Physicians’ Week and the maiden Enugu South-East Regional Health Summit, the NMA Chairman, Dr. Sunday Okafor, credited Governor Peter Mbah with transforming the working conditions of medical personnel in the state.

“Doctors in Enugu under Governor Mbah are among the best paid in the country,” Okafor said. “It would be counterproductive to disrupt health services in a state where the government has demonstrated real commitment to our welfare.”

According to him, while NARD members in federal hospitals are participating in the strike, their colleagues in state-run facilities have no reason to do the same.

“The issue driving the strike nationally is poor remuneration and welfare. But here in Enugu, we don’t have that problem,” he said. “Governor Mbah’s vision for an efficient and responsive health system has made our work easier and more fulfilling.”

Okafor noted that Enugu’s healthcare workers are the highest paid in the country, describing the governor’s reforms as “an enigma of leadership worth emulating.”

He called on the Federal Government and other states to prioritise health workers’ welfare as a way to stabilise the sector and end the cycle of strikes.

Beyond remuneration, the NMA chairman also praised the Mbah administration’s investment in health infrastructure, citing the ongoing construction of Type-2 primary health centres across the 260 electoral wards of the state.

“NMA Enugu has continued to partner with the state government because when leadership shows clear direction, it’s only right that we complement such efforts,” he said.

Okafor warned that nationwide disruption of healthcare services would only worsen patients’ suffering and undermine social stability.

Speaking on the theme of this year’s Physicians’ Week, “Healthcare as a Value Chain,Building Efficiency from Policy to Patients,” he stressed the need for patient-centred policies to bridge health inequalities.

For the first time, Enugu will host a South-East Regional Health Summit, bringing together heads of health institutions to share ideas on improving healthcare delivery across the region.

“Healthcare efficiency doesn’t start in the ward,” Okafor noted. “It begins with visionary policy, fair compensation, and systems that treat patients and professionals with dignity.”