The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has described as “flimsy,” comments suggesting that the economy cannot support their demands contained in their proposed conditions of service.
Public sector doctors have begun a nationwide strike following government’s inability to provide them with conditions of service.
[contextly_sidebar id=”uyoOIWNQdxR9sZW1cEBdeEJ0ZsqgxNsA”]A recent Facebook post by a Presidential staffer Stan Dogbe, claiming to be the demands of the doctors, angered the association which has since dismissed aspects of the publication.
Speaking to Citi News, the Deputy General Secretary of the GMA, Dr. Justice Yankson said the onus lies on government to “do the right thing” by giving them what they deserve.
According to him, no citizen in Ghana is bound by law to work for a particular employer including government therefore, public sector doctors “are at liberty to work for any other employer.”
“What we are saying is that if the current employer we work with is not ready to ensure that some conditions of service that we are supposed to have as an employee is properly streamlined, then we cannot continue to work with that employer; we would rather seek other employers to work with,” he explained.
Dr. Yankson stressed that people all over the world change jobs every day, therefore if they decide to change jobs, it is nothing out of the ordinary.
He recalled that a couple of weeks ago, the workers of the Judicial Service and lawyers at the Attorney General’s Department were all demanding better conditions of service from government but “did anybody see anybody put things on Facebook? Did anybody tell somebody that the economy cannot support it?”
“How come if it’s only doctors, this flimsy argument will be put up?” he asked, adding that the action by the presidential staffer who posted details of their conditions of service proposal is indicative that “there is no room for any talks at all.”
By: Efua Idan Osam/citifmonline.com/Ghana