Tension has emerged at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital (BSUTH), Makurdi, following complaints by resident doctors about drastically reduced salary payments for January 2026 amid an ongoing industrial strike.
A viral social media post by a medical doctor attached to the hospital alleged that some doctors received as little as ₦27,326.59, while another reportedly received ₦158 as January salary payments. The doctor linked the development to the prolonged strike by health workers, which commenced on 1 November 2025, demanding the payment of 18 months’ salary arrears spanning June 2023 to November 2024, alongside other welfare concerns.
In the post, the doctor described the payments as demoralising, particularly given what he termed poor remuneration, long working hours, and the absence of incentives for health workers in the state. He warned that continued neglect of specialist healthcare workers could have severe consequences for healthcare delivery in Benue State, especially for indigent residents who lack the means to seek treatment elsewhere.
In response to the claims, an adviser to the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of BSUTH dismissed the allegations as a “misrepresentation of facts”, insisting that the salary payments were calculated in line with Public Service Rules.
According to an internal memo issued by the hospital’s Director of Administration on 13 January 2026, earned allowances in the health sector, such as call duty, shift duty, clinical duty, teaching, rural posting, hazard, transport, and meal allowances, are payable strictly based on work performed. The memo clarified that staff who did not render services during the strike period were not entitled to such allowances and that only basic salaries were payable.
The adviser explained that salaries for November and December 2025 and January 2026 were computed on this basis, noting that striking workers are legally entitled only to their basic salaries. He further stated that doctors who received payments below their basic salary did so largely due to loan and cooperative deductions, which are automatically deducted at source.
He added that some staff were reportedly already on a negative salary balance due to existing financial obligations and that hospital management, “out of magnanimity”, allowed payments to go through rather than requesting affected staff to offset outstanding deductions.
Addressing claims surrounding another major demand of the strike, total renovation of doctors’ quarters, the adviser said renovation works had already commenced under the current hospital management in 2023. He disclosed that quit notices had been issued to occupants of the quarters to allow contractors to proceed with further renovation works, warning that eviction could occur if the notices expired without compliance.
The adviser stressed that the clarification was not intended to undermine the strike action by the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) but to “set the records straight” amid rising public concern.
The strike by resident doctors at BSUTH has now entered its third month, with negotiations ongoing, as patients continue to bear the brunt of reduced specialist healthcare services at the state-owned tertiary health institution.
