On January 12, the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) will begin the statewide strike that had been paused.
According to The Nation, the group issued a warning that, if the federal government does not meet its long-standing demands, its members will resort to full-scale protests and service withdrawal.
The association’s official X platform was used to brief members following an expanded National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on January 2. Following the meeting, President Dr. Muhammad Suleiman addressed dental and medical trainees and signed off on behalf of the National Officers Committee (NOC).
With the motto “No Implementation, No Going Back,” the president revealed a renewed action plan labeled TICS 2.0 in the update.
The resolution states that unless the minimum requirements are satisfied, NARD will resume TICS 2.0 at precisely 12:00 a.m. on Monday, January 12, 2026.
After the nine minimum demands have been fully implemented, the NEC will consider suspending TICS 2.0.
Some of these measures include paying the five doctors who were let go from the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja back their salaries and promotions, fully implementing the professional allowance table, and including the money for the arrears in the budget for 2026.
Additional demands include the following: the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare must provide chief executives with official clarification on skipping and entry-level placement issues; the Specialist Allowance must be reinstated and put into effect; the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria must re-categorize membership certificates and issue certificates after Part I; committees to regulate work hours and locum tenens must be established; and the Collective Bargaining Agreement process must be resumed and completed in a timely manner.
According to NARD, the one-week break before things pick back up was planned that way to give everyone a chance to have their congress meetings, engage with the media, and fulfill their legal obligations to security agencies like the DSS, the NPF, and the NSCDC, as well as hospital administrations around the nation.
Noting that it will be engaging with appropriate authorities more intensely in the coming days, the NOC informed members that it will implement all directives and said that it completely aligns with the NEC resolutions.
The National Executive Committee (NEC) ordered all ninety-one NARD center presidents to call congress meetings and then hold news conferences to brief the public on the issues and their solutions.
The goal, according to the association, is to take over national conversations about doctors’ wellbeing in the next week.
Also, from January 12th through the 16th, 2026, the NEC authorized demonstrations to be held in the center.
After this, regional protests will be planned by caucus leaders, and finally, the NARD National Officers Committee will organize a national protest.
Amid what it has called a pivotal stage in the fight for better welfare and a more effective health system, the association has called for doctors to be cool, stay together, and concentrate.
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