Patients at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), Sagamu, were stranded on Wednesday as doctors and nurses failed to attend to them following the ongoing nationwide strike.
Our correspondent gathered that staff of the hospital complied with the directives of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) that workers should embark on an indefinite strike.
On Wednesday, doctors, nurses, midwives, laboratory officials, record keepers and other staff of the OOUTH were seen returning home, saying “we have joined the strike, no work today.”
Patients and other individuals who visited the facility for whatever reasons were sent back.
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The union leaders had stormed the hospital with canes in their hands, ready to flog out anyone who might want to resume work against the strike action.
As of the time of filing this report, one of the main gates at OOUTH was under lock and key.
One Mrs Abiola Ade, who was at the hospital said, “I came from Abeokuta this morning to pick the result of a test I did last week, but they told me they have joined the strike. So, I will have go to back. This is so annoying.”
Also, one of the nurses, who did not want her name mentioned, stated that the hospital joined the strike on Wednesday and might remain without activities until further notice.
The NLC Chairman in Ogun State, Hammed Ademola Benco, described the compliance to the strike as encouraging.
He insisted that the labour in the state would not pull out of the strike, adding that the strike would be total.
“It is not possible for us to pull out of the strike because it is a national directive. We have been going around to make sure there is compliance and we can see that level of compliance is high.
“We just have to comply with the directive of the national body. The instructions are to stay at home so we don’t expect anybody to go to work.
“We have circulated different letters to all affiliates and they have started calling their members to stay at home because this particular strike is stay at home action, it is not the type of strike that we will be forcing them out of offices, it is stay at home action”, the NLC chairman said.
