Abia State Medical Doctors Protest Kidnap Of Colleague, Threaten To Embark On Strike

According to a report by SaharaReporters, the Abia State branch of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike in protest against the abduction of their senior colleague, Prof Uwadinachi Iweha.

The doctors gave the Abia State government 48 hours’ ultimatum to secure the release of their colleague, failure which the strike would commence.

SaharaReporters gathered that Prof Iweha was kidnapped in his house in his country home, Umuajameze Umuopara in the Umuahia South Local Government Area of the state on June 6, 2022.

The medical doctors reportedly trooped out on Friday after a meeting at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia with placards with various inscriptions, demanding an immediate release of their colleague.

Led by the state chairman of NMA, Dr. Chimezie Okwuonu, the doctors appealed to Governor Okezie Ikpeazu to assist in ensuring that the professor was rescued alive, adding that since his kidnap, "nothing has been heard about him.”

The doctors who matched from FMC to the Government House with placards which read “Dr Iweha should be released”, "Doctors’ lives matter”, regretted that doctors who work daily to ensure that lives were saved are constantly now becoming a target of kidnappers.

Okwuonu told the governor, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Okey Ahaiwe, that “We are here to register our displeasure over the kidnapping of our senior colleague,” adding that the incident was “depressing and dehumanising.”

According to him, arising from their meeting held at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, the doctors demanded for Iweha’s immediate release, stating that “if not, in the next 48 hours, we will embark on a strike.”

They also requested that the federal government and state government should prevent further occurrence.

While urging members to pray for the release of Iweha, the Abia NMA boss pleaded with Ikpeazu to put all machineries in motion to ensure that Iweha was released.

The governor Chief of Staff, while responding, assured the protesting doctors that the state government and security agencies would do everything possible to secure Iweha's release.