Eight months have passed since Ganiyat Popoola, a resident doctor at the National Eye Center in Kaduna, was abducted, and she remains in captivity.
In response to what is perceived as little government effort to secure Popoola’s release, the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has threatened a nationwide strike if she is not free by August 26.
Dele Abdullahi, NARD President, announced this during a press briefing on Wednesday, according to PUNCH. Abdullahi expressed frustration with the government’s inaction, stating that could no longer stand by while one of its members remained in captivity.
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A poster demanding Ganiyat Popoola’s release. Source: NARD X Page
“We’ve been engaging, but we’ve not had any direct communication with the security agencies or the state and federal governments regarding this tragic situation,” Abdullahi said.
“NARD has resolved to organise a national press conference and a protest march in all tertiary hospitals across the nation to demand Dr Ganiyat’s release.
“The association will embark on industrial action on August 26 if Dr Popoola is not freed by then.”
He added that NARD had sent numerous letters to the security agencies, the Kaduna State Government and the Federal Government of Nigeria, all to no avail.
The association has also issued a notice of industrial action to relevant authorities including the Ministry of Labour, the Nigerian Medical Association, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the Nigerian Senate, the Chairmen of the Senate and House Committees on Health, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Kaduna State Government.
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Ganiyat Popoola was kidnapped in Kaduna in December 2023, along with her husband and nephew. FIJ gathered that her husband was released in March but Popoola and her nephew remain in captivity.
The kidnappers demanded a N60 million ransom before they released Popoola’s husband.
NARD has been actively campaigning for Popoola’s release since July, according to its social media activity.
In 2021, Innocent Ujah, then president of the Nigerian Medical Association, cited insecurity as a key factor driving doctors to leave Nigeria.
The insecurity persists. FIJ previously reported that Nigeria saw more abductions in the first month of 2024 than in all of 2023, despite already alarming figures from that year.
The post Dr Ganiyat Popoola Still in Kidnappers’ Den After 8 Months. Her Colleagues Threaten Nationwide Strike appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.