JUST IN: Nurses Refute Minister’s Claim, Say Nationwide Strike Continues

The National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) has firmly stated that its ongoing nationwide warning strike has not been suspended, directly countering an earlier announcement by the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Ali Pate.

Pate had told journalists on Friday, after a closed-door meeting in Abuja, that the nurses had agreed to call off the strike following discussions with the federal government. However, NANNM’s National Chairman, Morakinyo Rilwan, dismissed the claim, insisting that the strike is still very much in effect.

“If it was the Minister who organized the strike, then he could call it off,” Rilwan told *Daily Trust*. “As far as I’m concerned, the strike organized by the association is still ongoing. The Minister didn’t organize the strike, so he doesn’t have the authority to call it off. There are procedures to follow if it is to be called off at all.”

The strike, which began on Wednesday, is a seven-day nationwide warning action to protest poor remuneration, staff shortages, unpaid allowances, and unsafe working conditions. It followed the expiration of a 15-day ultimatum issued by the association to the federal government.

“We are not backing down until there is concrete action, not just promises,” Rilwan added. “Our members are working under impossible conditions, and we will not accept lip service anymore.”

The nurses’ industrial action has further strained Nigeria’s healthcare system, which is already grappling with a parallel face-off between medical doctors and the government over unresolved welfare issues.