The Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will meet today in a bid to avert another crippling strike that threatens to shut down public universities across the country.
The Ministry of Education confirmed the meeting yesterday, describing it as part of government’s “commitment to constructive dialogue and collaboration” in resolving the long-running dispute. Director of Press and Public Relations, Boriowo Folasade, said the engagement was aimed at finding “sustainable solutions” to lecturers’ grievances.
But the union remains defiant. ASUU President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, accused government of “foot-dragging” on agreements dating as far back as 2009.
“We’ve demonstrated patience for far too long. Our members are impoverished and frustrated. This may be our last warning,” he declared.
Demands on the Table
At the core of ASUU’s demands are:
- Full implementation of the renegotiated 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement (based on the Nimi Briggs Committee draft of 2021).
- Payment of withheld three-and-a-half months’ salaries from the 2022 strike.
- Settlement of salaries owed to staff on sabbatical, part-time, and adjunct contracts.
- Release of outstanding third-party deductions, including check-off dues and cooperative contributions.
- Increased funding for university revitalisation.
- An end to the proliferation of new federal and state universities.
The union has also rejected the government’s proposed Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund (TISSF), dismissing it as a “bait loan” that would further worsen lecturers’ financial hardship.
Rising Tensions Nationwide
Earlier this week, ASUU chapters staged protests across several universities, disrupting academic activities and signaling readiness for industrial action.
In Kwara State University, lecturers accused government of failing to pay nine years of Earned Academic Allowances. At Adekunle Ajasin University, Ondo State, they marched across campus urging government to “just sign the agreement so we can move forward.”
At the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), lecturers lamented being “pushed into poverty,” while their counterparts at Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) appealed to President Bola Tinubu not to “waste the gains” of the recently inaugurated Yayale Ahmed Committee.
The most severe complaints came from Ambrose Alli University, Edo State, where lecturers claimed they are still owed up to 29 months of arrears. The school’s management, however, disputed the figures, saying phased payments had reduced the debt significantly.
A Familiar Crossroads
Since 1999, ASUU strikes have become a recurring feature of Nigeria’s academic calendar, often leaving students stranded and disrupting academic timelines. While lecturers insist the struggle is about survival and dignity, government faces a delicate balancing act between fiscal constraints and political promises.
For now, all eyes are on today’s meeting in Abuja. Whether it delivers a breakthrough—or marks the start of another cycle of broken promises and industrial unrest—remains to be seen.