ASUU Warns of Looming Strike, Tells Government “The Time to Act is Now”

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has raised the alarm over what it calls “lingering labour issues” in Nigeria’s public universities, warning that another strike may be inevitable if urgent action is not taken.

In a statement signed by ASUU President, Christopher Piwuna, the union accused both Federal and State Governments of neglecting the welfare of lecturers, failing to honour signed agreements, and leaving campuses underfunded. The warning follows a recent declaration by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, who said, “not again ever in this country will ASUU or tertiary institutions… go on strike.” While welcoming his optimism, the union insisted that promises must be backed by action.

“While ASUU share his optimism about dialogue and maintaining relationships, the government needs to go beyond words and act on our outstanding issues,” the statement read.

According to ASUU, many lecturers are teaching “on empty stomachs” and conducting research without basic resources such as electronic journals, books, chemicals, and reagents. They also face mounting personal struggles, from transportation costs to unpaid bills and children’s school fees. Piwuna lamented that despite these hardships, lecturers are still blamed for producing unemployable graduates, saying they “feel forgotten, shamed and demoralised by past and present governments.”

The union accused government officials of deliberately undermining the 2009 FGN-ASUU Agreement, which has remained unresolved for years. “Agents of government at the State and Federal levels have characteristically thrown the underlying principles of the Agreement overboard and resorted to platitudes and tokenism. They pick and choose what aspect(s) of the package to ‘renegotiate’ and implement,” Piwuna stated.

ASUU also criticised initiatives like the “Diaspora Bridge,” saying they portray academics seeking better working conditions as mere “volunteers.” The union further condemned political interference in university governance, citing the controversy over the Acting Vice Chancellor of Alvan Ikoku University of Education, whose promotions were “fraught with a lot of contradictions.”

Calling on Nigerian leaders and stakeholders to act swiftly, ASUU urged: “For the umpteenth time, ASUU invites all genuine patriots to prevail on Nigeria’s Federal and State Governments to address all lingering labour issues in the Nigerian University System to avert another looming industrial crisis.”

The statement ended with a final warning: “Nigerian academics are tired of governments’ excuses, which have only left them with a long list of Memoranda of Understanding/Memoranda of Action (MoUs/MoAs) – 2013, 2017, 2019, 2020 – and kept them talking over the renegotiation of the 2009 Agreement for upward of eight years! No memorandum or ‘discussion’ can take the place of a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) which fully addresses staff welfare issues and the requisite environment for productive academic work. The time to act is now!”