Health workers in Katsina State have rejected pressure to withdraw their strike notification before negotiations with the state government, insisting that they will not suspend the planned industrial action without a concrete commitment to address their grievances.
The workers’ position has created a fresh disagreement over the status of talks, with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) saying it has held several meetings with the government, while the health workers maintain that no formal negotiation has commenced with them.
The workers’ representative, Comrade Ibrahim Balangi, said the government was asking them to withdraw their strike notification before negotiations could begin, a condition they were unwilling to accept without a tangible commitment from the government.
“They are discussing something that we should withdraw our notification so that they can go into negotiation. We are yet to commence anything,” Balangi said.
“From the government side, there is no committee, no negotiation or anything. Nobody contacted us,” he added.
But NLC chairman in Katsina State, Comrade Nasiru Wada, gave a different account, saying the labour centre had met with the government four to five times over the dispute and had facilitated discussions on the workers’ demands.
“What is happening is that we have met four to five times and discussed extensively. The government gave us the opportunity to sit with the health workers and therefore come back,” Wada said in a telephone conversation.
According to him, the process could not be concluded within one or two days, explaining that the health workers had indicated that they wanted to hold a congress to determine their position on the government’s proposal.
“I’m still waiting for the health workers, as they said they want to have a congress for them to take a stand on what government is offering,” Wada said.
He declined to disclose details of the government’s offer, instead directing inquiries to the health workers.
Wada said he became involved in the dispute in his capacity as NLC chairman and had been facilitating discussions between the government and the workers.
However, Balangi said the workers had exercised considerable patience since 2023, when, according to him, the state government took steps to address the concerns of their counterparts but failed to extend similar treatment to them.
“Since 2023, the governor did something for our counterparts and he couldn’t do for us. We deserve to have something from them. But they refuse to do anything,” he said.
He maintained that the government still had time to resolve the dispute before the workers commence the planned industrial action next Tuesday.
“They still have time. If they want to do it, let them see wisdom in doing it. If they don’t want to do it, we cannot force them,” Balangi said.
The health workers’ representative also expressed concern over what he described as the government’s failure to publicly communicate its position on the matter.
Balangi said he visited some state-owned hospitals and described the situation confronting workers as “pathetic.”
He disclosed that he also met the commissioner for health over the matter, but said the commissioner declined to comment and directed him to the Head of Service.
“I went to the Head of Service and they also said they are having a meeting with the committee and they will brief the press. And up to now, nobody has briefed us,” he said.
With the NLC insisting that discussions have taken place and awaiting the outcome of the workers’ congress, while the health workers maintain that they have received no tangible commitment from the government, the dispute remains unresolved.
