A bill seeking to curb brain drain by mandating Nigerian medical doctors to practice for, at least, five years in the country before going abroad, has passed for second reading in the House of Representatives.
Tilted “A bill for an Act to Amend the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act, Cap. M379, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, to mandate any Nigeria-trained medical or dental practitioner to practice in Nigeria for a minimum of five before being granted a full licence by the council in order to make quality health services available to Nigeria,” was sponsored by Ganiyu Johnson.
Leading the debate at Thursday’s plenary, Johnson said the bill, when passed into law, will effectively checkmate the mass exodus of doctors abroad.
He said that bill will also ensure that no doctor was given a full operational licence until after five years.
Speaking against the bill, Nkem Abonta from Abia State said the bill was offensive.
Abonta said: “I have the eyes of seeing bills that will not move on well. What this bill is asking is offensive.
“The Bill is asking that any Nigerian trained medical doctor must mandatorily train five years before he can he be be given a licence after qualification. That’s not obtainable in any clime.”
But in his reaction to the observation, Johnson said it was to enable the medical doctors to give back to the society that trained them.
“Government has invested so much money in training these medical doctors, on the average. Recently United Kingdom opened healthcare visa to people; they were all going to UK, USA, Canada. So should we fold our hands?
“So to give back to our society after training you, the least we can get from you after your housemanship before you’re given full licence you practice for five years before you can go,” he said.
The Bill was, thereafter, put to a voice vote and majority of the lawmakers supported it.
In a related development, the House also passed through second reading the Nigerian Data Protection Bill and police force college training schools and institutions establishment Bill.
President Muhammadu Buhari had, on Tuesday, written to the House, urging the lawmakers to consider the bills.
He explained that the data protection bill will provide a legal framework for the protection of personal information and establish a data protection commission for the regulation of the processing of personal information.
He also explained that the police force college training schools and institutions establishment bill will provide a comprehensive institutional framework for the establishment of the Nigerian Police Force College for the provision of specialised training to officers in law enforcement to enhance their performance.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everydayAdvertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
I support this bill, if it's for students that attend Govt universiites not private uni. These people pay almost nothing as school fees and then after they're trained here, they take their expertise out of the country, which is totally unfair.. If companies can, why not govt? I also expect them to pass a bill, stopping govt officials from seeking medical help abroad as well, make everything balance,.
ReplyDeleteThis can only happen when the doctor was on scholarship or any form of bond
Deleteas long as you attend govt schools, fees are already subsidized, it's unfair that after making them paying next to nothing, they're ready to pay millions to foreign universities
DeleteThat shows how jobless our law makers are.
ReplyDeleteA country that couldn't obey it's own electoral laws, now you want to restrict movements of a self trained doctors that had no bond nor agreements with you.
They should have time to make meaningful laws.
ReplyDeleteThis is not obtainable anywhere.
If you don't want medical workers to leave for a greener pastures, I believe FG knows better ways to handle it..
Restrictions of international travel is not an option, meanwhile politicians travel abroad for medical trips.
We shouldn't start what we can not afford, that we know won't end well.
Let government do the needful, nobody will travel out
If the country is good why should the leave there country
ReplyDeletewhen they wanted to study, they did not realise, the country was bad
DeleteIf leaving this country for greener pastures by our doctors is a crime, then the lawmakers traveling for medical reasons is equally a crime.
ReplyDeleteNigerian law makers are as useless as useless. What did you give to the student medical doctors, which infrastructure or modern technology did you provide for conducive learning. Let's all the political thieves brings there children home to study in Nigerian Government university. Politician should stop with immediate effect overseas medical treatment health care fund. No worry Ghana or Togo close for learning.
ReplyDeletebut still they stay in the so called ill-equipped universities to learn, paying next to nothing as fees, abeg
DeleteWether in govt or private university they should work for 10 years b4 going to anywhere.
ReplyDelete