UNICAL clinical lecturers begin five-day solidarity strike

Clinical lecturers at the University of Calabar (UNICAL) have joined their colleagues from the South-East and South-South regions of Nigeria in a solidarity strike, expressing strong discontent over the exclusion of clinical lecturers from the Vice-Chancellor eligibility criteria in a recent job advertisement for Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.

During a press interaction, Prof. Friday Odey, Chairman of the Medical & Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN), condemned this exclusion as unacceptable, warning that if allowed, it may encourage other universities to adopt similar discriminatory practices, undermining the qualifications of clinical lecturers hired at the rank of Lecturer I or higher.

He highlighted, “This situation diminishes the professional status of clinical lecturers, who have significantly contributed to their universities’ academic, research, and service missions.”

Prof. Odey emphasised that if this exclusion at Nnamdi Azikiwe University is not addressed, it could set a concerning trend in other institutions, further sidelining clinical lecturers and devaluing their qualifications and contributions.

He called on the Committees of Vice Chancellors and Pro Chancellors to act swiftly to amend what he termed a discriminatory advertisement, advocating for the inclusion of clinical lecturers to ensure fairness in leadership selection within academic institutions.

“We stand in solidarity with our sister university and declare that we find this situation unacceptable. We urge relevant stakeholders to rectify the advertisement to rightfully include clinical lecturers in the system,” he stated.

“This is a warning strike; during this period, we will cease our university services as clinical lecturers for five days. It’s important to note that this is not a hospital strike and will not impact hospital services, only those at the university level.”

Should this issue remain unresolved, he warned, they may escalate their industrial action beyond the initial five-day warning strike to defend the integrity and relevance of their Fellowship qualifications and professional contributions.

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