COVID-19: Lagos Doctors Begins Indefinite Sit-At-Home Strike To Protest Police Harassment

The Nigerian Medical Association NMA, Lagos branch has ordered doctors in the state to commence an indefinite sit-at-home strike to fight what they described as 'conflicting directives by the government and Incessant police harassment'.

In a press statement released by Vanguard, and also signed by NMA Lagos Boss, Dr. Saliu Oseni, and the Secretary, Dr. Ramon Moronkola, the site-at-home request is expected to start today being Wednesday 20th May 2020 from 6pm.

The association insisted that it's not safe for its Doctor and health specialist to continue rendering health services under the misguided judgment and harassment from the police.

They said the decision is necessary following a series of reported police harassment from it Doctors who were harassed while going home after the closing of work, and some while rushing down to work due to emergency.

They lamented that the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Mr. Harlem Odumosu has refused to follow the directives given by President Muhammadu Buhari, through the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on the exemption of essential workers including doctors and other health workers.

The statement read:

“As a direct result of the conflicting directives of the government and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, the NMA was inundated yesterday (Tuesday, 19th of May, 2020) evening of several cases of harassments and intimidation of doctors and other health-workers by officers and men of the Lagos State Police command.

"The healthcare workers were either resuming duty, returning home, or on-transit to heed an emergency call.

“There was a most disturbing case of an ambulance conveying an injured patient which was prevented from moving to destination while the attending health-workers were harassed and temporarily detained.

“You will recall that this same ugly situation had occurred sometimes in the early phase of the ongoing lockdown/restriction of movement based on similar conflicting directives from the State Commissioner of Police.

“It took the intervention of the Governor of the State, following a petition by the Association, for normalcy to be restored.”

The Lagos NMA further said that until the FG and the Lagos State Police command give a detailed explanation of the lockdown/restriction of movement, the NMA members will stick to the sit-at-home order.

They further requested a composed statement, signed by the FG and the Police Authority, that will exempt healthcare personnel and its providers.

The association also insisted that the statement must be announced online, as well as a duplicate submitted to the Secretariat of the Lagos State Branch of NMA before the sit-at-home order will be called off.