SIR: With respect to the front page publication in The Guardian of Wednesday December 30, 2015 on the above subject matter, I say that there is more than a rumbling in the house of health, in fact there is commotion in the Federal Ministry of Health characterised by the headship of the majority by the minority and manifested in the tyrannical and undue allocation of resources to this minority. The article quite highlighted the appointment of the ministers of health, the minister of state for health and the permanent secretaries in the ministries of health by the president as medical practitioners as if this group of health workers are the only ones worthy of these appointments in the health sector.

President Buhari’s advisers should have informed him that there is need to have a balance of power in the health sector for peace and harmony to reign in this sector. In the quest for justice and equity, appointment in the health sector must be all encompassing, more so, the practicality of the trade of the health professionals is holistic hence one tree truly cannot make a forest in the health sector.

I see this appointment as lobbying carried-too-far, that is, a medical practitioner is appointed as Chief Executive Officer of health, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and administrator of the ministry of health. For these to be called square pegs in square holes is naivety of the highest order. In fact, I think that the game of monopoly is more democratic than this monopolistic appointments occasioned by what I described as lobbying-carried-too-far.

A sordid manifestation of this ridiculous appointment has begun to come to light. On December 24, 2015 all medical practitioners became prodigies of Korede Bello, and started singing (I don get alert – Godwin). Some of them in fact were worried because the monetary value of the alert became alarming in spite of the fact that some hospitals and Federal parastatals had not been paid November and December salaries. The medical doctors were paid different sums of money ranging from 3.5 million to 4.5 million naira per person. A cursory investigation later revealed that this largesse was a 10 month arrears of the controversial increase in the salaries of medical practitioners that captured doctors on CONMESS 3-7 hence excluding house officers and junior medical officers.
Even though some of the colleagues were worried that the other members of the health sector (Joint health Sector Union) may raise eyebrow at this discriminatory largesse, but the NMA president convinced Professor Adewole to ensure that this ridiculous, untimely and appalling payment is made.
• Ogunlana Opeoluwa,
Scribe, Advancing Nigerian Physiotherapy Network.