UNICAL clinical lecturers end indefinite strike, resume today
Clinical lecturers at the University of Calabar, under the aegis of the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria, have called off their indefinite strike.
The professors went on the industrial action on June 13, 2025, to protest what they regarded as their deliberate exclusion from the ongoing selection process for the office of Vice-Chancellor.
They claimed that a job posting that discriminated against clinical faculty members was rejected by the university's governing body.
The association requested that the advertisement be withdrawn and reissued with more inclusive criteria in a memo dated June 13 that was signed by Dr. Patience Odusolu, Chairman of MDCAN's University of Calabar Chapter, and Dr. Ehiosun Aigbomian, Secretary. They declared that clinical lecturers would keep cutting off all services till this was completed.
But on Monday, MDCAN's National President, Prof. Muhammad Muhammad, affirmed that the issue has been settled as a result of Dr. Tunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, stepping in.
"In clinical medicine, we do not follow the usual Master's/PhD route," he explained, describing the differences in training courses between clinical and non-clinical academics in medicine. Our training is administered through a six- to eight-year academic and clinical residency program that ends with a fellowship.
One is eligible to be hired as a lecturer at universities and a consultant in hospitals thanks to this fellowship. According to predetermined standards, one advances from Lecturer I through the academic ranks to Professor.
He emphasised several former Vice Chancellors with fellowship qualifications have served with distinction.
“In Calabar, despite the Federal Ministry of Education’s guidelines on the appointment of Vice Chancellors, Provosts, and Rectors, the university insisted that only those with PhDs could apply. That was the core of our disagreement. We thank the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, for intervening directly with the university to resolve the dispute.
“The matter has been sorted. The university has issued an addendum to the initial advert, now stating that individuals with either a PhD or a medical fellowship are eligible to apply for the Vice Chancellor position.
“Following this resolution, MDCAN members at the University of Calabar resumed their duties last week,” he said.
