The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has ordered a nationwide suspension of academic activities over the non-payment of lecturers’ June 2025 salaries, sparking fresh tensions between the union and the Federal Government.
ASUU President, Professor Chris Piwuna, confirmed the industrial action on Monday in Abuja, noting that the union was merely enforcing a long-standing resolution passed by its National Executive Council (NEC): “No Pay, No Work.”
According to Piwuna, the directive has already taken effect at institutions such as the University of Jos and the University of Abuja, where lecturers have withdrawn from lectures, meetings, and other statutory duties.
“We agreed at NEC that if salaries are delayed by more than three days into a new month, our members should down tools,” Piwuna said.
“This is what is happening now. Our people are experiencing real hardship.”
The ASUU chief criticised what he called the government’s “indifferent attitude” towards lecturers’ welfare, describing their monthly earnings as “paltry” and unsustainable.
He noted that the problems became worse after university staff were moved from the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System (IPPIS) to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), a change that has led to consistent delays in salary disbursement.
“The payment platform itself is not the issue,” he clarified.
“The platform works fine once funds are released. What we are facing is a deliberate delay from the Office of the Accountant General.”
Piwuna revealed that the union had made multiple attempts to engage the relevant authorities, including the Minister of Education and the Accountant General of the Federation, to resolve the salary delay crisis, but the efforts yielded no tangible results.
He warned that any university whose staff had not been paid would join the strike, stating that the decision was uniform across all ASUU branches.
“We are tired of having the same conversations,” he said.
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“We want to teach. We want to work. But how can we, when we’re denied the means to live?”
Beyond the salary dispute, ASUU also raised concerns about the Federal Government’s failure to fully settle Earned Academic Allowances (EAA) owed to lecturers. Of the N50 billion initially agreed upon, only N40 billion has been released, with N10 billion still pending.
“We hope the outstanding EAA is paid without delay. We don’t want to fight over it, but we will if necessary,” Piwuna warned.
In Jos, the local ASUU branch chairman, Dr. Jurbe Molwus, confirmed compliance with the NEC resolution, stating that members had boycotted all academic responsibilities following the delay in salary.
“The congress ratified the NEC directive. Lecturers have stayed away from classes and meetings. Our monitoring team is ensuring full compliance,” Molwus added.
With the strike gaining traction across campuses nationwide, there are fears of prolonged academic disruption if the Federal Government does not act swiftly to meet ASUU’s demands.
As of press time, no official response has been issued by the Ministry of Education or the Office of the Accountant General.