Medical Lecturers To Begin Strike September 1

The Nigerian Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA) has confirmed plans for a nationwide warning strike in September 2026, set to begin Tuesday, September 1, after what the union describes as the Federal Government's continued failure to resolve long-standing welfare demands.

Prof. Aniekan Peter, NAMDA's Acting National Secretary-General, announced the decision in a statement to journalists in Uyo, following the conclusion of the association's National Emergency Council meeting.

This did not happen overnight. NAMDA had already given the government a three-week ultimatum earlier in August, with a deadline of August 31, directing its branches nationwide to hold congresses and sensitization programs to prepare members for possible industrial action if the deadline passed without resolution. According to Peter, 14 branches of the association had already endorsed the strike ahead of the announcement.

At the center of the dispute is the government's continued failure, according to the union, to formally document medical lecturers' salaries under the CONMESS pay structure and to conclude negotiations over their conditions of service.

The association also listed several unresolved financial grievances, including:

• Non-payment of the Medical and Dental Consultants' Association Teaching Allowance
• Non-payment of Earned Academic Allowances
• Non-payment of Excess Workload Allowance

Peter argued that the government's push to train more doctors is fundamentally undermined if the welfare of the lecturers training them keeps being ignored.

The union pointed to Nigeria's existing shortage of medical lecturers and the ongoing "Japa syndrome," the wave of health professionals emigrating abroad, as evidence that the situation is only getting worse.

"At a time when the country is already experiencing a severe shortage of medical lecturers, it is unfortunate that the Government is allowing these avoidable issues to escalate," the statement read.

NAMDA was clear that the action, once it begins, will not be limited or symbolic.

"The warning strike is scheduled to commence Tuesday next week and will be total and comprehensive across medical schools in the country," the statement said.

It is worth noting that a separate report on the same day cited September 3 as the strike's start date, so the exact timing may still be subject to confirmation as the situation develops.

Despite the firm announcement, NAMDA left room for a resolution before the strike takes effect, urging the government to return to the negotiating table.

The union called on the Federal Government to pay attention, resume talks, and find a solution "before the warning strike becomes inevitable."