SUNTV Global Channel | December 30, 2025
Nigeria’s healthcare system is once again on the brink as the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has threatened to embark on a fresh, total and indefinite nationwide strike, accusing the Federal Government of failing to honour a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) reached after weeks of industrial action.
In a strongly worded statement, NARD said the President Bola Tinubu-led administration has ignored multiple deadlines agreed upon after the association suspended its 29-day strike on November 29, following assurances from the Federal Ministry of Health.
According to the association, the MoU clearly committed the Federal Government to implement key demands within four weeks. However, more than a month after the agreement was signed, NARD says there has been no “visible or substantive progress” in fulfilling those commitments.
In an urgent appeal titled “Urgent Appeal to Avert a Looming Nationwide NARD Strike,” NARD Secretary General, Dr. Shuaibu Ibrahim, warned that Nigeria is now on the verge of another shutdown of medical services, described as Total and Indefinite Comprehensive Strike (TICS 2.0).
“This situation represents a breakdown of trust and good faith in government–professional relations,” the association said, stressing that resident doctors should not be blamed if industrial action resumes after repeated extensions and goodwill gestures yielded no results.
NARD outlined a timeline of restraint, noting that after suspending its warning strike, it issued a two-week ultimatum, followed by a 30-day extension and an additional seven-day grace period — all without meaningful response from the government. The eventual MoU, it said, has now been ignored.
The association emphasised that resident doctors are the backbone of service delivery in Nigeria’s tertiary hospitals and warned that continued neglect of their welfare has led to low morale, exhaustion, and frustration within the profession.
“Resident doctors are overworked, demoralised, and increasingly disillusioned. When agreements endorsed by the Federal Government are treated lightly, it sends a dangerous message that professionalism and dialogue no longer matter,” NARD stated.
The association has now appealed to senior medical professionals and respected elders across the country to urgently intervene and prevail on the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Government to honour the agreement.
“History has shown that when respected medical elders speak, governments listen,” NARD said, warning that failure to act swiftly could result in another avoidable disruption of healthcare services nationwide.
As tensions rise, millions of Nigerians who depend on public hospitals now await the government’s response, amid fears that another prolonged strike could further strain an already fragile health system.
SUNTV Global Channel — bringing you the latest in news, health, and national development, one story at a time.
