Health Minister: We shan’t negotiate, striking interns and those who want to join them can leave

The Minister of Health Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng has reiterated that government will not in any way try to negotiate with medical interns regarding their ongoing strike.

Aceng in a statement released on Monday afternoon said interns who are not interested in “working” should go ahead and vacate hospital premises, same as those who are interested in joining them.

“We must take note that internship is a training period, it is not work and they are not public servants, so they are free to take a decision not to train it is up to them because if they don’t train, they will delay their registration period to become medical workers,” Dr. Aceng said.

She said that whoever is in the strike and those joining them are the losers.

“They stand to lose; it is them not us. We do not lose anything when someone does not train. My advice to them is to stop misbehaving,” Aceng added.

According to Dr. Aceng, everything that was demanded by the interns was committed to by the government and is in the pipeline.

“The supplementary they asked for has passed through the process and will be wired to them when ready (maybe in a week’s time or so), so any normal human being should go and finish their internship, it is to their own advantage. Those who are not willing should leave our premises, they are doing nothing there,” she said.

Dr. Aceng said that strikes are not the means to solve every problem.

“That is very unfortunate, the population are longing for services, they need to be treated. Now, these want to strike to paralyze services. For those who want to strike, let them continue.”

Intern doctors went on strike on November 6, 2021, demanding payment of enhanced medical internship allowances.

The government assured the interns that the allowances were to be paid as soon as the supplementary budget is approved by Parliament.

http://nilepost.co.ug/2021/12/11/out-of-time-govt-fires-striking-medical-interns-orders-them-out-of-hospital-premises/

The supplementary budget was approved on November 19, 2021, but the interns are yet to receive their allowances, a month later.

Last week, Dr. Henry Mwebesa who is the Director-General Health Services said that the Health Ministry is now waiting for the release of these funds from the Ministry of Finance.

Mwebesa ordered the striking interns to leave all government hospitals in one week to prepare the room for a new cohort of interns.

On Sunday, the pre-interns however announced that they will not join any government hospitals if the demands of their senior colleagues are not sorted.