By Victor Ahiuma-Young
NIGERIA Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, yesterday gave the Lagos State Government up till Monday to resolve all its differences with the striking Lagos  doctors and recall all the sacked doctors unconditionally, failing which members in Lagos and its environs would down tool and join the striking doctors.

President of NUPENG, Comrade Igwe Achese, who made this known in Lagos, said NUPENG could not continue to fold its hands and watch poor Nigerians in Lagos who could not afford the cost of private hospitals die due to the ongoing industrial action.

He said even though the union was aware that the matter was in the court, NUPENG could not the trust the lives of innocent  Nigerians in the hand of Judiciary, insisting that meaningful dialogue between both parties must be done this weekend to ensure that the matter was resolved or the union would join the strike.

Comrade Achese said though the union knew Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos as a listening and workers’ friendly governor, not matter how far both parties had displayed ego, the plight of the suffering and dying patients who had not been attended to since the beginning of the crisis must be paramount.

The NUPENG president called on all well meaning Nigerians especially Lagosians to Wade in and ensure that the issue was resolved before Monday, saying “we cannot continue to display ego or wait for judiciary while innocent Nigerians are dying unnecessarily because of the closure of the hospitals.”

According to him, “the attitude of the Lagos State Government is not in line with modern practice of industrial relations that promotes social dialogue in the resolution of industrial disputes. The government took a hard line position instead of embracing dialogue and a win-win approach.

We in NUPENG, solidarise with the sacked doctors because an injury to one, is an injury to all. It is against this backdrop, that we call on the Lagos State Government to go back to the round table and recall the sacked doctors back to work. The inexperienced doctors that the government hurriedly employed are not adequate and properly equipped to treats patients. We have lost several citizens of this country and maternal death rate has increased.”

”The government must allow reason to prevail and reinstate the sacked doctors and negotiate with them on their demands with a view to arriving at a compromise. Governor Fashola should know that some of his best admirers are doctors.

The doctors should also understand and remember their hippocratic oath they took as medical doctors. We call on both parties to go back to the negotiating table with maturity and resolve the conflict. NUPENG will join forces with other well-meaning Nigerians to call on the Lagos State government to recall the sacked doctors.

If the issue persists and remain unresolved, NUPENG may be force to embark on solidarity stoke until the sacked doctors are recalled to save the lives of Nigerians in Lagos.”