Striking For Survival

Here in my country, the state of the health sector has become concerning over the years. People wonder why the majority of the health practitioners do everything they can to travel out of the country and start working in another country. They do this as soon as they get their licenses. One of the reasons why they do this is because there are better opportunities in the health sector in other countries and more importantly, health practitioners are well paid. This is why the government came up with a law that nurses and doctors must have worked for up to two years in Nigeria before they can travel abroad to work in other countries. The problem with the health sector in my country isn’t the doctors and nurses, but the system. The leaders who work on the system.

Health is wealth. The health sector should be given maximum attention, but the reverse is the case. Growing up, I used to think nurses and doctors are well paid. Without them, a hospital wouldn’t function well, right? So it is just right that the government meets their needs. However, I have realized that the government chooses to do whatever they want however they want it. Sometimes, nurses and doctors go months without getting paid. This is why some of them put up a nonchalant attitude toward work. Have you ever visited a hospital where the doctors and nurses attend to patients harshly? I have had personal experiences when it comes to nonchalant nurses and doctors. How do you expect them to smile while working when they have not received salaries in months? When they cannot take it any longer, they go on strike so the government would have no other choice but to meet their needs.

My mom is a nurse who works in a government hospital. Growing up, I remember how often they went on strike because the government failed to meet their needs. Sometimes I wonder what the leaders use the money for. I mean, it is not like this money isn’t available, so why not just pay nurses and doctors? What is the point of making them go on strikes? I remember the time they went on long strike. The head of the health care sector was not ready to back down. My mom stayed home for more than one month. Eventually, the government paid their salaries. This is the same thing the government does to lecturers. I can’t count the number of times ASUU went on strike in the past decade. Sometimes, the government would pay their salaries, other times, they would threaten to sack them all and employ new people.

When government hospitals go on strike, things go really bad. In the end, it is the patients who suffer. Patients who can barely afford government hospitals would be forced to hustle for money to get treated in private hospitals and we all know how expensive they can be. People who can’t afford private hospitals, go to their various homes and wait for the government to do the needful. Sometimes, strikes take days, other times, it takes weeks or months, depending on how quickly the government meets their needs.

WILL A STRIKE ACTION MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

I have established the fact that public workers go on strike because the government fails to meet their needs. Usually, it is because they fail to pay their salaries. The government knows how important the health sector is. They are aware that when nurses and doctors go on strike, many lives are at stake. Yes, a strike action will make a difference because it will force the government to meet the workers’ needs.

Another important question to consider is if the strike action will be worth it if the government finally pays more attention to the sector. If we put ourselves in their (nurses and doctors) shoes, we will understand why they do things. Nurses and doctors are salary earners who depend on their monthly income to pay rent, take care of their family and themselves. Now, imagine if the government failed to pay their salaries for 3 months. How do they expect them to survive? To some extent, a strike action is worth it if the government finally pays more attention to the sector.

Images used are mine.

Thanks for reading.