ASUU Warns FG: Lecturers’ Patience Has Reached Its Limit

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28/08/25 • 24 Görünümler • 0 Pay • Yayınlanan Diğer

A decisive meeting between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is set to hold in Abuja this week, raising hopes that the long-drawn renegotiation of the 2009 FGN..

Sources confirmed that the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, will join the Minister of Labour, officials from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC), and the Solicitor-General in a high-level dialogue with ASUU leaders. The talks are expected to produce a counteroffer from government and establish a concrete timetable for signing and phased implementation of the renegotiated agreement.

The urgency stems from mounting pressure across ASUU branches nationwide, with the union warning that its patience is exhausted. The renegotiation, which concluded in December 2024 and was formally submitted to government in February 2025, has yet to be implemented.

Prof. Al-Amin Abdullahi, ASUU Abuja Zonal Coordinator, stressed at a media briefing that the union had fulfilled its part of the bargain and expected government to demonstrate seriousness by adopting the report without delay. He noted that the 2009 agreement—signed during the administration of the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua—remains the cornerstone of the dispute, as it promised revitalisation funding, institutional autonomy, improved welfare for academics, and a monitoring framework.

Meanwhile, ASUU President, Christopher Piwuna, speaking on Channels Television’s *The Morning Brief*, said lecturers have demonstrated more than enough patience in their negotiations with government.

“We’ve been on this for such a long time, and we have, in our view, always demonstrated patience, understanding, and have adopted dialogue to try to address these issues,” Piwuna said.

He lamented government’s slow response, despite engagements with President Bola Tinubu’s administration, and warned that public university lecturers have made sacrifices for too long without their entitlements being met.

“Since democracy started in 1999 to now, people are quick to say that ASUU has been on strike and schools have been closed, and you wonder what the government thinks about these actions,” he added.

With fresh intervention efforts led by Dr. Alausa, stakeholders say this week’s meeting may determine whether Nigeria’s public universities avoid another nationwide shutdown.

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