Doctors protest, demand release of female colleague in captivity

Saturday, August 17, 2024 -Resident doctors, under the aegis of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) on Saturday, staged a nationwide protest to drive home their demand for the release of their colleague, Dr Ganiyat Popoola abducted in Kaduna State on 27th December, 2023.

They have threatened to down tools if the woman was not freed by her abductors.

Dr Popoola, a nursing mother was abducted alongside her husband and her nephew from their official quarters at the National Eye Centre, Kaduna, on the 27th December, 2023.

In Delta State, doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, (FMC) Asaba, marched round the hospital premises chanting songs of solidarity in procession and demanding that the government urgently secure the release of their colleague from the kidnappers.

The National Assistant Secretary of NARD and immediate past President of FMC Asaba Chapter, Dr Asore, confirmed that the national body had done everything necessary to secure the release of their colleague but to no avail.

“We have done everything possible to get Dr Ganiyat Popoola released. It has been promises upon promises by security agencies.

“We intended doing a nationwide protest but for the fragility of the country at the moment coming from the End Bad Governance protest, we decided to shelve it by asking our members at individual states to restrict the protest within their hospital premises,” he said.

Speaking to the press during the protest, the President of the FMC Asaba Chapter of the Association of Resident Doctors, Dr Kenneth Okolie disparaged the attitude of government towards medical personnel in the country, maintaining that the security of health workers had remained a less priority to the political leaders.

He said the behaviour had led to the Japa syndrome in the medical profession.

The President called on the federal government and the government of Kaduna State to secure the release of Popoola with immediate effect or have them shut down their services until the needful was done.

The Public Relations Officer of the Chapter, Dr Silva Juliet equally lent her voice by calling on the media and well meaning Nigerians to support the agitation of the Resident Doctors to ensure that their colleague was released unhurt to reunite with her family and colleagues.

In solidarity with the protesters at the administrative complex of the hospital, Dr Omo Ekeneam (CMAC) representing the MD, Dr Victor Osiatuma, addressed the Resident Doctors, assuring them that management would support them and work with them in synergy to advance the calls for the release of Dr Ganiyat Popoola.

It was gathered that the husband whose health condition was fragile was later released on 7th March, 2024, after series of negotiations and payment of over N60 million and foodstuff as ransom, while the wife and nephew had remained in the custody of the bandits ever since.

Meanwhile, some persons had imagined that because the woman is a doctor, the abductors must have found her useful to be rendering medical services to the bandits and their captives.