JUNE 26 ― So this has been announced by certain parties and here is my stand. It is my personal opinion and does not reflect the organisations/institutions I am affiliated with.
1. I AGREE that this Hartal/strike is a result from the failure of the contract system. Two main issues are:
― no clear postgraduate pathway for contract doctors
― no clear and transparent criteria for selection to permanent positions
Multiple calls have been made by multiple NGOs to the government but there has been no clear answer. The system is messy ― and I am all for change and revamp.
2. However, there are a few points that need to be mentioned. Some have said “nothing to lose because our contract ends in December 2021”. This is NOT TRUE, the date has been extended to December 2022. While this does not solve the problem long term, it does mean that we still have time to work on pushing for change.
3. Some have said “4-5k doctors are going to lose their job yearly”. Again this is not true because this would be assuming no one gets absorbed into permanent service.
4. I hope that the contract doctors taking part in this Hartal are aware that you can and might have your contract terminated. Whether it is fair or not is a separate matter, but it can be very hard to fight against this and can cause much financial distress.
5. How many of the organizers have already left KKM? Please realise that the consequences for participants in the Hartal will be very different if you are still in government service.
6. What are the “demands” or issues that the Hartal is looking for? It must be clear if not those participating will just be blindly jumping on the bandwagon.
7. There is a pandemic going on ― and the strike must not affect patient care. Should you need to arrange with others to cover your work ― this will take time and not be feasible in such a short period. There are also many centre which are run mainly by contract doctors. Our duty as a doctor is to do no harm and patients must always come first.
8. Therefore while I agree that there must be some form of protest/push for change, I do not condone a strike/being absent from work. Again I repeat ― the system NEEDS A REVAMP and we need change, BUT we have not (yet) exhausted official channels ― let's not jeopardise our jobs (messy but still intact) unless we really need to.
9. Please do not be hasty! There is much work being done ― the recent meeting with YB Finance Minister was a result of the statement by MMA and not the Hartal announcement. The MMA will also be planning a national day of solidarity with contract doctors and will be announced very soon. Watch this space. You may share this.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer our publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
