Rumbles in the Borno health sector as workers continue their grumbling for better packages

Rumbles in the Borno health sector as workers continue their grumbling for better packages

By: Bodunrin Kayode

For the second month running some health workers in the Borno State health sector have continued their grumbling over the discriminatory wages dished out to them by the government.

They are frustrated that in spite of their lingering protests, the lopsided salary payment continues among the Borno State Health team believed to be one of the best in the country.

They argued during a recent chat with this reporter that “nurses and junior doctors with lesser certificates and qualifications are being paid and rewarded higher than others just because they belong to trade unions that have perfected the act and practices of trade union melancholy, greediness and selfishness.”

The aggrieved workers who preferred to remain anonymous posited that the Borno health workforce are working at crossroads with suspicion, envy and hatred adding that there is total lack of trust and love among their ranks since such virtues are seemingly lost.

The professionals maintained that Pharmacists, Laboratory Scientists, Radiographers, Physiotherapists and other allied Specialists are obviously frustrated even as they work with deep grudges against the system showing so much apathy to them.

They wonder why nurses and junior doctors with lesser qualifications, experience or skills were better renumerated, given quarters to stay and enjoy other broader privileges while they are treated like trash.

“The leadership of the Health sector made up of three Professors of medicine for reasons best known to them continuously misadvice the highly rated executive Governor of Borno State and have succeeded in reducing the once agile and effective Borno State Health service to it’s lowest ebb.” One of them said.

Speaking further, they regretted that pregnant women despite the free maternal drug program set up for them by the government, they still suffer neglect and abuse by some care givers who are disgruntled.

They added that sadly, in spite of all the efforts of the government, “majority of citizens stay on endless queue waiting for several hours to access basic medical service especially in our secondary healthcare facilities.

“Laboratory orders and medical investigations are conducted by Ill motivated staff with disenchantment.

“Drugs are being prescribed indiscriminately to citizens without drug-drug or drug-food interaction screening and safety checks by certified Pharmacists because of the very few numbers of Graduate Pharmacist Staff in employment.

“His Excellency, the best achieving Governor in the History of Nigeria and also known worldwide should not allow His envious records of sub regional governance job perfection to be dented by bad and self seeking advisers and gluttonous union officials” The concluded.

Borno is suffering from a huge deficit of health workers but recently the Government has been doing all it can to lay the foundation for the correction of this lapse.

Rumbles in the Borno health sector as workers continue their grumbling for better packages