Strike: Governor El-Rufai sacks Kaduna nurses below level 14

The Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has fired all nurses below grade level 14 in the state for commencing strike in unity with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

El-Rufai ordered the Ministry of Health in Kaduna State to instantly advertise vacant positions to replace the sacked nurses.

Kaduna State has been shut down in the last 48 hours as aviation workers, bank workers, rail workers, electricity workers, health workers, teachers, among others, down tools in protest against the supposed unfairness of the El-Rufai-led administration and the mass firing of over 60,000 civil servants.

Meanwhile, the governor, in a statement on Tuesday named, ‘KDSG will not tolerate criminal acts disguised as industrial action’, depicted the action of the NLC as a “campaign of economic and social sabotage and lawlessness”.

In the statement endorsed by the governor’s Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Muyiwa Adekeye, El-Rufai warned that any worker not found in his or her place of job would be fired.

It read in part, “KDSG (Kaduna State Government) acknowledges doctors and some other categories of health workers that are trying to run public health facilities, but regrets that some nurses have joined the unlawful strike and engaged in sabotage of some of our health facilities. Nurses were implicated in the forceful discharge of patients in many health facilities.

“Reports from Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital disclosed that some identified nurses disconnected the oxygen supply of a two-day old baby in an incubator on Monday, 17th May 2021. The names of the three nurses from the Special Baby Care Unit who were involved in this despicable act have been forwarded to the Ministry of Justice to initiate prosecution for attempted murder or murder in the event we lose the baby.”

The statement added, “The Ministry of Health will dismiss all nurses below GL 14 for going on an unlawful strike. Salaries that could have gone to them are to be given as extraordinary occupational allowances to the health workers who are at their duty posts to fill the gap of those absconding from duty. The Ministry of Health has been directed to advertise vacancies for the immediate recruitment of new nurses to replace those dismissed.

“Any academic staff of KASU (Kaduna State University) that does not report for work will be dismissed. The authorities of KASU are to submit a copy of the attendance register for all categories of staff daily to the Secretary to the State Government and the Commissioner of Education.

“All MDAs are also to submit daily copies of attendance register to the Head of Service.”