By Joan Nwagwu
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened to resume its suspended nationwide strike over unpaid salaries and poor implementation of the 2025 agreement.
ASUU president, Christopher Piwuna, disclosed this in a statement issued to newsmen on Friday in Abuja, after the union’s emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting.
Piwuna said the December 2025 FGN-ASUU Agreement, achieved after more than eight years of struggle, had been poorly implemented by the Federal Government and several state governments.
He said the situation had left lecturers uncertain about their salaries and entitlements, warning that failure to address the issues could trigger another nationwide industrial action.
“Unless immediate and concrete steps are taken to fully and comprehensively address issues bordering on the welfare and well-being of Nigerian academics, ASUU-NEC will not accept any blame,”Piwuna said.
He said the union could call out its members “on a nationwide strike action within the shortest time possible” if the government failed to satisfactorily address the outstanding issues.
Piwuna said three-and-half months out of the seven-and-half months’ salaries withheld by the Buhari administration remained unpaid, in spite of the payment of four months by President Bola Tinubu.
“We note with regrets that nothing has changed about the three-and-half months’ salaries left out of the seven-and-half months withheld by the Buhari Government since we last addressed the public,” he said.
He said the outstanding salaries had caused severe financial and psychological hardship for lecturers, while their purchasing power had declined significantly since the salaries were earned.
Piwuna also raised concerns over billions of naira deducted from lecturers’ salaries for pensions, cooperative societies and ASUU check-off dues but allegedly not remitted for several months.
“ASUU-NEC is fully prepared to call out its members if nothing concrete is done to address this lingering problem without further delay,” Piwuna said.
The ASUU president commended Abia Gov. Alex Otti and other governors implementing the 2025 agreement, urging states yet to comply to act promptly to prevent industrial crises.
Piwuna criticised Osun Gov. Ademola Adeleke over the two-year tenure extension granted to Osun State University Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Clement Adebooye, describing it as contrary to university law.
He said the action could undermine university autonomy and revive unhealthy practices associated with tenure extensions, urging Adeleke to reconsider the decision.
The ASUU president also backed Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President Joe Ajaero’s call for immediate review of the National Minimum Wage to cushion the impact of worsening economic hardship.
He urged students, parents, labour leaders, media practitioners and other Nigerians to intervene in the brewing crisis before it escalated into another disruption of university education.
“ASUU cannot guarantee uninterrupted academic calendar at the expense of the existential needs of our members,” Piwuna said.
He said the union remained open to dialogue with the Federal Government and state governments, but warned that failure to achieve satisfactory progress could force it to resume the suspended strike.(NAN)
Edited by Funmilayo Adeyemi