Lawmakers accuse resident doctors of receiving multiple salaries

The House of Representatives Committee on Healthcare Services has accused resident doctors working in federal institutions of receiving multiple salaries.

This was contained in a statement issued by Rep. Tanko Sununu, Chairman of the Committee, while briefing newsmen on Thursday, April 8, in Abuja over the ongoing strike by the Nigeria Association of Resident Doctors (NARD).

“Let me cite an example, in the list of names submitted to the Budget Office, there were many names of doctors appearing in multiple hospitals.

“An account is receiving salary payment more than once in a month, which I was called by the Budget Office that if I can sign an undertaken, then their salaries will be paid,” he said.

He, however, stated that the right thing must be done and the list was sorted out to correct the anomaly.

He said those that had received multiples salaries and the hospitals involved were sorted and forwarded to the committee.

Sununu revealed that the committee would table it before the house for necessary action, adding that the right thing must be done to end the current NARD strike.

He called on the striking doctors to tamper justice with mercy, stressing that Nigerians believed that their demands were genuine, but there were processes to achieve such demands.

“On behalf of the speaker, the National Assembly we stand to ensure that everybody is respected accordingly but we have to also follow due process,” he said.

He said that the allegation that the Minister of Labour and Productivity was not willing to meet the striking doctors was due to a communication gap.

“I believe that NARD not meeting the minister is due to communication gap, even while we were seated, the minister called me to update me on development, this may not be the exact demand of NARD but the minister is doing a lot,” he said.