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The Benue State University Teaching Hospital (BSUTH) has sacked 50 locum nurses, 100 administrative locum staff, and several contract workers with immediate effect, sparking outrage among health workers in the state.
According to reports, many of the affected workers are being disengaged without receiving several months of salary arrears owed to them. Most are reportedly owed between three and four months’ salaries dating back to 2024 and into 2025, with some having worked for months without any payment.
Duty rosters at the hospital have been adjusted to accommodate only permanent staff, effectively terminating the services of those who had kept the system operational despite prolonged hardship.
Permanent staff employed in 2024 are also said to be owed between three and six months of salary arrears. The development has raised serious concerns, especially following recent statements by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that governors are no longer owing workers’ salaries.
Questions are being asked about the whereabouts of funds meant for salaries and why Governor Hyacinth Alia and the Chief Medical Director of BSUTH, Dr. Terungwa Stephen Hwande, have not cleared the outstanding payments before sacking the affected workers.
The situation has been described as unfair, with many viewing the sackings as poor reward for the loyalty and service rendered by the affected staff under difficult conditions.
