The Health Ministry has accused a spokesperson for the upcoming contract medical officers’ strike of slander, further heightening tensions between the two parties.
The ministry also threatened legal action.
Twitter user @avenfauzi tweeted yesterday that Health Minister Dr Adham Baba met with strike organisers and allegedly told them contract medical officers could go ahead and “just stop work”.
Contract medical officers have threatened to walk out on July 26 for a day, unless the government fulfils their demands for permanent placements and equal opportunities.
The ministry later responded saying the allegation against Adham was untrue and “slanderous”.
“This posting made by @avenfauzi is slander. It is not true at all.
“It is very obvious that this posting harbours malicious intentions and tries to cause chaos.
“The relevant parties will be made to face justice through legal means,” the ministry said on its Facebook page.
Government is given three weeks
This spat comes as a group of contract medical officers are determined to proceed with their nationwide strike, dubbed #HartalDoktorKontrak online.
That is if their two main demands are not met in the next three weeks.
Strike organisers have given their assurance that their protest will not jeopardise Covid-19 care as their other colleagues will be able to stand in for them.
They will also try to not mobilise contract medical officers from Covid-19 hospitals.
Malaysia is facing a surge in infections and registered 6,988 new cases in the past 24 hours.
Adham previously promised to discuss contract medical officers’ woes with the cabinet and called for patience.
However, strike organisers contend that they have been waiting for five years for their problems to be resolved.
Anticipating disciplinary action against strike participants, they have a legal team in place.
According to the Health Ministry's data, 23,077 contract medical officers have been recruited since 2016, of which only 789 (3.4 percent) have been absorbed as permanent staff.
Contract medical officers sign a five-year contract with the government with no promise of a permanent position at the end of their contract.
Compared to their permanent counterparts, contract medical officers are not eligible for government scholarships for specialist studies.
The proposed strike has received support from the Malaysian Health Coalition and several prominent doctors online.
The Malaysian Medical Association has distanced itself from the walkout plan and instead called upon members of the public to support contract healthcare workers by joining its "Code Black" online protest. - Mkini
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