Fashola employs 265 health tech graduates, appeals to striking doctors

Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State has appealed
to the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, to call of its
strike in the interest of patients in the various hospitals
begging for attention.

Speaking at the second convocation ceremony of the
Lagos State College of Health Technology in Yaba, Lagos,
Southwest, Nigeria on Thursday 3 July, the governor
disclosed that the state has employed 265 health
graduates.
He then appealed to all medical workers to desist from
using strike actions as a means of meeting their demand.
He said those that invented strikes in the country’s health
sector did it for the sake of their patients and not for
themselves, thereby asking the present crop of doctors to
emulate the past leaders.


Fashola said all medical workers from the least to the
highest in the chain of command were like gods on earth,
saying that “only sick people who have been ill knows
your importance.
“Workers in other sectors of the country’s economy are
not satisfied with their remuneration. They are not
holding governments to ransom because they do not
want Nigeria to fail,” he stated.

However, the governor gave automatic employment to all
265 fresh graduates of the college, saying that his delight
was that “we are producing graduates in areas where the
state economy has a compelling need. The primary
healthcare is critical to Lagos economy.”
“We are producing graduates, who will help us achieve our
objectives. So, in order to show that we are ready to work
our talk, I say publicly that all of the graduating students
today will be immediately employed by our government.
“We will work the process. We will go to the State House
of Assembly if it is necessary to raise supplementary
budget to fund their employment. But I make this
commitment to you as a matter of honour,” he said.

According to him, “we are offering automatic
employment to the 265 fresh graduates of the college. The
state government primary objective is to make sure that
hospitals are not filled because they ensure initially that
the people do not fall sick.”
Fashola also said the government would grant autonomy
to the management of the institution, saying that
government would only intervene in the affair of the
institution when necessary.

“Believe me, no governor, no president wants to be
involved in day to day running of institutions. That is why
there are Vice Chancellors, provosts, lecturers and
governing councils. Let us ask ourselves almost too often
when there are problems in the schools where do the
students and lecturers run to, they run to the
government. This is a shared responsibility. When the
request to grant this institution autonomy gets to me, I
will approve it immediately,” he stated.