Daily Independent (Lagos)
Okekearu Michael
28 May 2009
opinion
It has been said over and over again by intellectual giants like Professors Chinua Achebe and Wole Soyinka that the Nigerian ruling establishment is anti-intellectual. And there is every reason to believe these literary giants, given our experiences both recent and old.
This means the country prefers its top educational elite to live abroad instead of in Nigeria in order to prevent the emergence of an egalitarian society that can challenge tyranny and other forms of malgovernance. Those that dare to remain in the country are relegated to the background in such a pathetic manner. This ugly behaviour of government has found expression in lack of local content in top-flight oil/construction companies, antiquated educational system and inadequate funding of healthcare delivery. The incumbent President, Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, has a historic opportunity to change the course of Nigeria's history. Being the first university graduate to govern the country, it is expected that he should bring in intellectual dimension [a capacity that his predecessors lacked] while proffering solutions to our present challenges as a nation. We in the medical profession would like him to emulate countries like India and Malaysia that we were at par with just a few decades back. India for instance has painstakingly built a world class healthcare delivery system that has become the envy of the whole world today. They arrived there not by accident but by careful planning from great leaders with sound intellect and great vision. And as I write this piece, Indian hospitals still attract Americans, known for their patriotism, as well as the proud British. The question now is: Can Nigeria produce a world class healthcare delivery system now or in the near future? I don't think so. This is especially so since our diasporan doctors who hold the key to the renaissance are always frustrated each time they try to settle at home.
Time was in this country when as a young medical graduate, one could walk into a Volkswagen showroom to pick up a modest Beetle. Not anymore. The earning capacity of the Nigerian doctor has been bastardized over the years. And each time they want to draw the attention of the government to this, blackmail becomes the norm. They are quickly reminded of the Hippocrates Oath. But when reciting the Hippocrates oath, as the controversial Lagos medical elders did, the blackmailers smartly omit the part of the oath that specifies the condition under which the doctor must operate. With this as background, the Lagos medical elders must be criticised for trying to throw a spanner into the works of their junior colleagues. They acted like card-carrying members of the governor's party pursuing narrow objectives, rather than the general welfare of the profession.
Barring other contingencies, the Nigerian Labour Congress would get the government to implement the new national minimum wage of N52,000. And when that happens, many doctors in the employ of various state governments in Nigeria would have joined the minimum wage category of labour that includes drivers, cleaners, gardeners, chefs etc. What a shame!
A nation that spends millions of tax-payers funds training its doctors only to lose them to countries like Ghana, South Africa, the U.K., U.S. etc is not worth its salt. Little wonder that Nigeria has been declining in stature steadily among the comity of nations over the years.
And so long as Nigeria does not ask questions about its best brains, the downward movement is a fait accompli.
For now there is no alternative to the government implementing the Medical Salary Structure as a first step towards resolving the industrial challenge in the health sector. Secondly, the government must improve funding of the sector and ensure that no budgeted fund is returned as unspent at the end of the year. And the time to act is now, not tomorrow.
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