The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, has provided an update on the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Minister, Nyesom Wike’s approval for the payment of health workers’ allowances.
The Mandate Secretary of the FCT Health Secretariat, Dr Dolapo Fasawe, gave the update while addressing reporters in Abuja on Friday.
Fasawe also confirmed that 37 doctors have already been employed.
She said that the plan is to hire close to 300 more healthcare professionals in the shortest possible time.
Fasawe, however, stressed that the necessary bureaucratic procedures would be followed in implementing the Minister’s approval to ensure a lasting solution and mitigate future agitation by FCT health workers.
According to her, “In every organization, both public and private sectors, there is documentation, there is uploading, there is verifying, there is ensuring that the payment system is not distorted and this is not a one-time payment.
“The good thing about the Minister’s approval is that we will not have this agitation again. For his approvals to be sustainable, we need time for administrative purposes.
“I cannot give you a definite time but I can tell you for example, the low hanging fruits like employing more doctors is already in effect.
“He has given a large number. As of today, 37 doctors out of that number have been employed and we are in the process of employing close to 300 healthcare workers.”
“In the shortest possible time, this is a priority to the Minister; every allowance will be paid so that we do not come back to this agitation again next year.
“We have to put in place sustainable systems to ensure that these people are paid automatically. That is why it cannot be a quick fix and next year we are back to this table again discussing doctors’ strike”, she stated.
Also speaking, the President of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors, Dr Osundayo Tope Zenith thanked the FCT Minister for his kind heart in acceding to the requests of the Association of Resident Doctors.