Angela Onwuzoo
Leaders in the health sector have faulted the Federal Government’s plan to stop funding the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria by 2024, insisting that the government should come up with a policy change that will allow it to become autonomous and self-sustaining to cushion the effect of the proposed plan.
The physicians said without funding, the MDCN will become paralysed and urged the FG to allow the council to utilise its internally generated revenue without remitting anything to the Treasury Single Account if it decides to stop the funding.
The senior medical experts said being autonomous also implies that there will be a legal framework by the FG that will empower the MDCN to appoint its chairman, which hitherto has been the prerogative of the president, who also doubles as the chairman of the tribunal.
The physicians who spoke exclusively to nigeriacurrently.com Healthwise noted that the job of MDCN, which is the regulation of medical and dental practice is so important and funding remains crucial.
The FG had through a circular from the Budget Office, dated June 26, 2023, announced its decision to stop funding Ministries, Departments, agencies, and other notable professional bodies, which include the MDCN, effective from January 1, 2024.
Speaking with our correspondent, a past President of the Nigerian Medical Association, Professor Mike Ogirima, said if the Federal Government wants to stop funding MDCN, it should not have any business with the council’s internally generated revenue.
The ex-NMA president, who is also the Provost, College of Health Sciences, Federal University Lokoja, Kogi State, reminded the government that there should be a policy change to that effect, while the MDCN should be 100 per cent self-sustaining.
The don said, “Where a policy is being introduced, there should be a cushion effect to that policy. The effect of that is not far-fetched. First, the FG may tinker with already existing policies. The policy of whatever we contribute as practitioners to the council should not be directed to the Treasury Single Account.
“So, that is a big policy change. That means if you want to make it autonomous, let what they generate be utilised by them.
“The Federal Government hitherto has been in charge of staff emolument. The council is meant for medical and dental practitioners. We pay an annual subscription and if we are going to be left only with an annual subscription and other incidental charges, then the council will sit down and appoint its chairman.”
Ogirima reiterated that the government should hands off running the internal affairs of the council if it does not want to fund the council.
He said, “The legal framework can be altered so that the council will appoint its chairman; an independent chairman because the role of the FG in supervising the council is that it appoints the chairman of the council.
“But the composition of the council is all the state directors of medical services, then 11 or 10 members from the NMA.
“The chairman of the council, who also doubles as the chairman of the tribunal, is appointed by the president.
“So, that is the area we are saying that if there is going to be a change in the responsibility of the Federal Government towards MDCN, there should be a policy change because if we don’t do that, the regulatory function of the council will still be there.”
The Professor of Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery said the MDCN would face financial challenges if the FG stopped funding it without coming up with a policy change that would cushion the effect.
He queried, “But how will they cope if you say they should exist on their own self-sustaining terms? How will they cope? How will they pay staff salary? How will they come for a meeting? These are issues and these issues must be attended to otherwise, the council will be paralysed without funding.
“The FG should be ready to say okay, whatever you raise as internally generated revenue should be utilised by the council.
“They shouldn’t say 30 per cent or 25 per cent should be paid as VAT or anything to the treasury.
“Without government funding, MDCN can sustain itself with whatever it generates but the FG should not be partakers of what it generates.
“So, MDCN should be 100 per cent self-sustaining and the government should hands off running the internal affairs of the council. There should be a policy to that effect.”
President of the NMA, Dr. Uche Ojinmah, described the FG’s plan to stop funding the MDCN as ill-conceived, noting that it could lead to disaster.
He said, “The job of MDCN, which is regulation of medical and dental practice, is so important that funding by the government is appropriate.
“If the FG stops funding the MDCN, I wonder who we want to do it? Probably, the doctors and dentists will take over funding a body that regulates and may punish them if necessary. Let us remember that he that pays the piper may dictate the tune.”
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