Abia State University, Uturu, has suspended Professor Nnamdi Chinwendu Nwaeze of the Department of Economics over social media posts concerning lecturers’ welfare and remuneration.
The university announced the suspension on Thursday, August 13, 2026, in a statement signed by its Deputy Registrar and Public Relations Officer, Chijioke Nwogu.
Management said the posts attributed to Nwaeze were considered inimical to the university’s interests and uncomplimentary to its Visitor.
It said an investigative panel had been constituted to examine the matter, adding that the suspension took immediate effect pending the outcome of the inquiry.
The university did not specify the posts that prompted the disciplinary action.
The development followed Nwaeze’s commentary on Wednesday, August 12, concerning the indefinite strike by the university’s chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU-ABSU.
Nwaeze alleged that lecturers promoted between 2023 and 2026 had not received salaries corresponding to their new ranks, while some staff had allegedly gone as long as 44 months without pay.
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He also claimed that lecturers remained on the 2009 ASUU/FG salary structure, had never received Earned Academic Allowances at ABSU and were owed about N163 million in cooperative deductions.
Nwaeze further alleged that most ABSU professors earned below N400,000 monthly and urged the Abia State Government to resolve the dispute.
Reacting to his suspension, he wrote: “In life, somebody must pay the price for the liberation of others.” He added, “Don’t sympathize with me; instead, direct your sympathy to the paymasters.”
ASUU-ABSU had issued a 14-day ultimatum on July 22, 2026, over unresolved welfare demands. Following the expiration of the ultimatum, the branch declared a “total, comprehensive and indefinite” strike on Tuesday, August 11.
The union cited outstanding entitlements, promotion-related issues, non-remittance of deductions and unpaid Earned Academic Allowances among its grievances.
The dispute is part of wider disagreements over the implementation of the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU agreement. At its National Executive Council meeting on August 8 and 9, ASUU directed branches in about 20 universities to issue 14-day ultimatums over what it described as inadequate implementation of the agreement.
Although Nwaeze’s suspension came amid the strike and his public comments on lecturers’ conditions, ABSU did not expressly state that the disciplinary action was solely linked to his remarks on the industrial action. It cited various social media posts and referred the matter to an investigative panel.
The panel’s findings will determine the next step in the case, while the ASUU-ABSU strike remains in force.