Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP), University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, has declared an indefinite strike over the alleged refusal of the hospital management to implement the decision of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare on the disciplinary case involving the Director of Pharmaceutical Services, Dr Adeyinka Ishola.
The union said the strike would commence from 12 am on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, following what it described as the failure of several attempts to resolve the dispute through dialogue, negotiations and ultimatums.
Chairman of NUAHP, UCH chapter, Comrade Oladayo Olabampe, announced the action at a press conference in Ibadan, saying the union’s demand was for the immediate implementation of the ministry’s decision to reprimand and reinstate Ishola.
ALSO READ: Kaduna recovered 500,000 hectares of farmland from bandits — Commissioner
Olabampe, who addressed journalists alongside other union leaders, including Treasurer Comrade Ahmad Abdulsalami, Secretary Comrade Michael Onafowora, Comrade Obumneke Ogudamen and Financial Secretary Comrade Adeoye Adebowale, said the dispute arose from the sale of a tricycle associated with the Pharmacy Department.
According to NUAHP, the vehicle was sold for N1.1 million after a departmental management meeting, while the proceeds were paid into the department’s account and subsequently used for various departmental needs.
The union maintained that an independent investigation by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare found Ishola not guilty of any fraudulent act, but held him responsible for failing to carry UCH management along in the sale.
It said the ministry consequently recommended that the director be reprimanded and reinstated, rather than dismissed.
The union accused UCH management of refusing to implement the ministry’s decision several months after it was reached.
“We hereby declare that Dr. Adeyinka Ishola is not a thief, though he might have committed an administrative error just by not carrying the management along,” Olabampe said.
He added that the union had issued two 15-day ultimatums and exhausted other avenues of engagement before declaring the industrial action.
“We have made consultations. We have negotiated. We have appealed. We have done all that could be done,” he said.
Olabampe said the strike would involve allied health professionals across several disciplines, including pharmacists, physiotherapists, medical laboratory scientists, radiographers, health information managers, medical social workers, environmental health officers, dental therapists and dental technologists, among others.
He said the union was not opposed to discipline within the health sector but insisted that due process and the rule of law must be respected.
“While we believe in discipline, prudence, sanity and integrity, we also stand for and protect the rule of law,” he said.
The union appealed to the Federal Government and other stakeholders to intervene in the dispute and prevail on UCH management to implement the ministry’s decision.
The strike, according to NUAHP, will continue indefinitely until its demands are met.
WATCH TOP VIDEOS FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE TV