NPP Would Have Prevented Doctors� Strike � NASARA

The National Coordinator of the NASARA Wing of the New Patriotic Party, Kamal Deen Abdulai has stated that the protracted industrial action by the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) would not have occurred if the NPP were in government. The NPP has accused government of being insensitive�over the doctors� strike. Nana Akufo-Addo has said the Mahama-led administration is hiding behind the IMF bailout programme �to frustrate these important negotiations.� Doctors in the public sector are demanding codified conditions of service and have resolved not to return to work unless their demands are met. Several negotiations between the GMA and government have broken down. Speaking on Citi FM�s New analysis programme, The Big Issue, Kamal Deen said the NDC had not been proactive in addressing the issue. �Government has not been proactive. If you deem the service as essential and you don�t deal with issues as such, then there is a problem. The pieces of communication that came from the�presidency towards this particular problem would have been avoided if we [NPP] were in office.� �If we were in government, no official would have come out to speak unguarded. These comments went a long way to fuel the impasse as we have it now. We would also have ensured that some proactivity is seen and not wait until the 29th July deadline was given by doctors,� he added. Members of the GMA withdrew emergency services last week and voted to extend their strike by two weeks yesterday [Friday].