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SSAUTHURIAI urges President-elect to revive all sectors

By Charles Coffie Gyamfi, Abeokuta
27 April 2015   |   2:34 pm
THE Senior Staff Association of Universities Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHURIAI), has urged the Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s in-coming administration to revive all sectors of Nigeria upon assumption of office.
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Buhari

THE Senior Staff Association of Universities Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHURIAI), has urged the Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s in-coming administration to revive all sectors of Nigeria upon assumption of office.

The General Secretary of the association, Mr. Moshood Akinade, who spoke in Abeokuta at the 4th Quadrennial general meeting of the Health Workers union at the Federal Medical Centre, stated that Buhari’s administration should “evolve programmes that will breathe fresh life into key areas of the national life like health, education and the economy”.

According to him “I don’t personally believe that we can tell the President-elect what to do. But if he values health, education and economy, then he will have programmes for them and this is what I expect from the new regime coming on board.”

Speaking on the issue of incessant strike action by Unions in the health sector, Akinade said nobody enjoys strikes, stressing that it usually occurs when government refuses to honour its agreements with workers.

His words: “People don’t just go on strike. Workers don’t just go on strikes. If you consider Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) for instance, there are issues that have been going on for 5 years.

Most of these issues have been referred to the national industrial court.” “The matter was in court for nine months and judgment was given in favour of JOHESU and government refused to implement it.

So if we took pain to go to court and government refused to recognise that, we cannot just sit and fold our hands” He added, “We didn’t approach the court free of charge. You know what it takes to get a lawyer, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

It’s a lot of money.” “If we try an issue for four or five years and it is still not resolved, then we have to go on strike”. In his remarks, the Sector Chairman of the union for South West, Prince Olawale Ogundipe, called on warring factions of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), to resolve their differences in the interest of labour movement in the country.

According to him “My advice to Labour leaders is for them to see leadership as call to service and should not be a do or die affair. All we know is that NLC conducted election in Abuja, duly attended by the Ministry of Labour and all relevant parastatals.” “They witnessed the well conducted election, my appeal is for the winners to extend a hand of fellowship to those who lost so that Labour movement can be united”.

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