South Darfur medics protest salary delay

Hundreds of medical staff members staged a sit-in at the Ministry of Health in Nyala on Monday, in protest against the delay of their salaries of February.

“Police forces rushed to the ministry to prevent an escalation, in case we would take to the streets,” a protesting doctor reported to Radio Dabanga.

“A large number of employees discovered that their names disappeared from the payroll after the Ministry of Finance had computerised the salary administration. The ministry has not been able to fix the problem until now.”

He said that the medics suspect that there may be another reason for non-payment of their salaries. “The South Darfur authorities want to close any financial gap that may disrupt the course of the election.”

According to an administrative staff member of the Health Ministry about 2160 names are missing in the financial records.

“The Minister of Health refused to respond to the medics’ demands, saying that the salary payment is not his responsibility,” he told Radio Dabanga.