Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened to embark on strike over the Federal Government’s failure to implement agreements and resolve ongoing issues in Nigeria’s university system.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday at the University of Jos, the ASUU President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, said the union had been “pushed to the wall” after over two years of patience without results.
Piwuna rejected the government’s loan scheme for university workers, describing it as a ‘poison chalice’.
He accused the present administration of deliberate delay tactics in renegotiating the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement, addressing outstanding salary arrears, and implementing measures to revitalise universities.
“Trust has been destroyed by the government. It is, therefore, up to them to regain it to avert any strike,” Piwuna said.
On the 2009 Agreement and Collective Bargaining, the Union lamented that despite the submission of the Alhaji Yayale Ahmed Report in February 2025, the government has failed to act on its recommendations.
ASUU expressed concern that it undermined the principle of collective bargaining, to which Nigeria is committed as a signatory to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention.
While acknowledging a planned government meeting on August 28, ASUU warned that time was running out. The draft agreement, it noted, covers crucial issues such as conditions of service, university autonomy, academic freedom, funding, and the review of laws governing JAMB and NUC.
It strongly rejected the government’s proposed Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund (TISSF), which seeks to provide loans to lecturers.
The union insisted that what its members needed was improved wages through the renegotiated agreement, not more debts.
The union also criticised the unchecked establishment of universities, accusing successive governments of turning them into tools for political patronage rather than genuine centers of learning.
According to the union, Nigeria has 339 universities, 72 federal, 108 state, and 159 private, yet many lack basic facilities and staff
He said the National Executive Council (NEC), after its recent meeting at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, resolved to wait for the outcome of the government’s August 28 meeting before taking further action.
However, the Union announced plans to hold rallies across university campuses next week as a warning signal to the government.
https://guardian.ng/news/ASUU-threatens-fresh-strike-says-fgs-loan-scheme-poison-chalice
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