Federal University of Health Sciences Doctors Begin Indefinite Strike

Doctors and medical consultants at the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo (FUHSO), Benue State, have started an indefinite strike due to the non-payment of their salaries for the past eight months.

As a result, operations at the university’s teaching hospital have come to a complete halt.

Insiders at the hospital say the crisis is the result of years of poor leadership by previous heads of the institution.

Two major figures mentioned are former Vice Chancellor, Professor Innocent Ujah, and former Chief Medical Director (CMD), Professor Silas Ochejile. Both are accused of corrupt practices, including misuse of funds, inflated contracts, and illegal job placements.

A hospital staff member, who asked not to be named, said:

“This university has been in crisis since it was established. Sadly, it is our own people, Idoma professors, who are behind much of the damage.

From Professor Ujah’s weak leadership to Professor Ochejile’s period of job racketeering and unpaid wages, things have only gotten worse.”

Staff also said the hospital, under Professor Ochejile’s leadership, suffered severe shortages in basic medical supplies. According to them, the pharmacy could not even provide simple drugs like paracetamol.

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Doctors reportedly worked without proper furniture and in poor conditions, despite the university receiving large government budgets each year.

The FUHSO doctors indefinite strike highlights deeper issues in the institution’s management. While a new CMD, Professor Teddy Agida, has taken over, sources say he is struggling to fix the damage caused by previous administrations.

“He met an empty treasury,” said another staff member. “There’s no money to pay salaries, clear debts, or carry out urgent renovations.”

The indefinite strike by doctors and consultants has left many patients without care, and there is growing concern that the situation could affect medical students and the wider Otukpo community.

Hospital workers are calling for urgent government intervention to pay the owed salaries and investigate the alleged corruption that has crippled the university’s healthcare services.

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