NAFDAC workers commence indefinite strike

The National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) wing of the Medical and Health Workers Union (MHWU) yesterday embarked on indefinite strike.

The union wants the management to implement agreed welfare package entered in 2013.

It is also asking for the immediate retirement of the agency’s Acting Director General, Yetunde Oni, adding that it wants Oni to hand over to the immediate senior officer before the appointment of a substantive director-general.

Vice Chairman of the union, Idu Isua, while addressing members, said the union signed an agreement with the management and the Minister of Health to review its welfare package in 2013, but the demands were yet to be met.

He disclosed that the Minister of Health and NAFDAC management, along with Wages and Salaries Commission, agreed to review members’ pay upward after they embarked on strike to press home their demands in 2013.

He said: “We resolved that funds be drawn from our Internally Generated Revenue to finance the upward reviewed package of staff but to our greatest surprise, nothing was done since then.”

“When we came on board as union in 2013, we took a look at the allowances of staff and discovered it was low compared with other agencies that we enjoy same salary scale with.”

Isua said the union complained to the Ministry of Health and took it up with management “but up till today, nothing has been done.

“The strike was not a fresh one because we took same action
two years ago and last year and based on agreement reached, the strike was suspended. However, nothing was done on our salary review up till now.”

Isua also said that Mrs. Oni, who had been acting director-general of the agency was due for retirement on September 21, having attained 60 years of age “but was currently not in the country.”