The health sector in Edo State has been thrown into turmoil as the state chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association has ordered an indefinite suspension of medical services across public and private facilities following the abduction of two doctors.

The association’s drastic move is a protest against what it describes as an alarming rise in insecurity and targeted attacks on health workers in the state. The NMA leadership says doctors can no longer guarantee their safety while on duty, and that the latest kidnappings have pushed an already tense situation to breaking point.

In a statement signed by its chairman, Dr Eustace Oseghale, the Edo NMA said the decision to withdraw services was not taken lightly, but had become unavoidable after two of its members were seized in separate incidents on consecutive days.

One of the victims has been identified as Dr Babatunde Abu, a medical practitioner abducted in Auchi, in the Etsako West area of the state. His kidnappers are reported to have demanded a ransom of N100 million, a figure that has further inflamed anger and anxiety within the medical community.

The second abducted doctor has not been publicly named, but association officials say both incidents occurred while the victims were going about their normal routines, underscoring how vulnerable medical professionals have become both within and outside their workplaces.

According to Oseghale, the abductions have deepened a climate of fear among doctors who already contend with long hours, limited resources and the pressures of serving in a system under strain. He warned that without concrete steps to protect health workers, more practitioners may leave the state or the country altogether, worsening an already critical shortage of medical personnel.

“We will continue to withhold services until our colleagues are released and adequate security measures are implemented. We urge a swift resolution and expect security agencies to treat the matter with the seriousness it deserves,” Oseghale said in the statement.

The association has directed its members in government hospitals, private clinics and specialist centres to comply fully with the service withdrawal, while making limited exceptions for life-threatening emergencies where possible. However, many facilities are expected to operate at skeletal levels, and some may shut their doors entirely until the situation changes.