Amaliba slams GMA’s new fuel demand

A lawyer for the governing National Democratic Congress is stoking the flames with comments that will potentially worsen the crisis in the health sector.

Abraham Amaliba does not understand why doctors will demand 80-100 gallons of petrol as part of proposals for a new conditions of service.

"Are they going to operate filling stations in their homes?" Amaliba retorted on Joy FM's newsfile programme on Saturday.

Doctors have declared a strike that may lead to mass resignation if government fails to sign onto a new conditions of service document that will spell out the entitlement of doctors.

The three paged document signed by the GMA President Dr Kwabena Opoku Adusei is dated June 29, 2015.

The proposal wants doctors to be entitled to 40% of basic salaries as accommodation allowance per month, 20% as core duty facilitation allowance, 30% clothing allowance, 20% maintenance allowance, 20% utility allowance, 50% as professional allowance and 25 special risk allowance and vehicle tax exemption to doctors.

They are also demanding for the increase in gallons of petrol provided to the doctors.

Some of these demands have been rejected by government leading to the strike and a potential mass resignation by the doctors.

Discussing the matter on Joy News Abraham Amaliba said some of the demands were outrageous.

He accused the doctors of deceit.

"The doctors deceived all of us; why should they tell us there is no condition of service if they are receiving 20 gallons of petrol already," he said.

"They now want 80 gallons, are they going to operate filling stations?" he asked.

The NDC lawyer also dismissed assertions that doctors are making the demands because of the opulence they see in politicians.

He said, "we are allowed to choose professions," he said, adding if they think the pay is not good as doctors, they should resign and become politicians.

Already there are doctors like Mathew Opoku Prempeh, and Communications Minister Dr Edward Omane Boamah who are into politics, he pointed out.

He said the doctors cannot still wear their robes and want to be treated like the chief who the community serves just because of the position of authority he holds.

Egbert Faibille Jnr who was also on Newsfile said the demands by doctors are mere proposals which will have to be negotiated.

He therefore found it unfair and indiscrete for the proposals to be leaked to the press while negotiation went on.

He was however convinced that some of the demands were outrageous and implored the GMA to reconsider some of the demands they made.