The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened to resume strike action across Nigeria’s public universities, warning that it may activate its suspended industrial action without further notice if the Federal and state governments fail to resolve outstanding issues affecting lecturers.
The warning followed an emergency meeting of the union’s National Executive Council (NEC) held on September 5, 2026, at the Festus Iyayi National Secretariat Complex, University of Abuja.
In a statement signed by ASUU National President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, and released on Friday, the union said the failure of governments to fully implement the 2025 agreement, pay outstanding withheld salaries and remit deductions from lecturers’ salaries had created conditions capable of triggering another crisis in the university system.
ASUU said it could no longer guarantee uninterrupted academic activities while the economic and professional welfare of its members remained unresolved.
The union said lecturers were still owed three-and-a-half months out of the seven-and-a-half months’ salaries withheld during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, despite the payment of four months by the current administration.
According to ASUU, the outstanding salaries have lost more than half of their value since 2022 as a result of the devaluation of the naira and rising inflation.
“We state for the umpteenth time that the lecturers have done the work for which they are being punished. They did it at huge cost to their physical and psycho-social well-being,” the union said.
“Some lost their lives in the process and many are now managing life-threatening ailments. For healing and restoration in the Nigerian University System, we think the withheld salaries of lecturers should be released without further delay.”
ASUU also accused the government of failing to remit billions of naira deducted from lecturers’ salaries for pension contributions, staff cooperative societies and union check-off dues.
The union described the non-remittance of the deductions as a double financial burden on its members, arguing that lecturers were not only denied access to the money but also lost potential investment returns.
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It further alleged that the continued withholding of some deductions could be connected to lecturers’ opposition to the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
“ASUU-NEC is fully prepared to call out its members if nothing concrete is done to address this lingering problem without further delay,” the union warned.
2025 Agreement
The union also expressed concern over what it described as the “non- or haphazard implementation” of the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU Agreement by federal and state governments.
While acknowledging recent efforts by the Federal Ministry of Education to clear outstanding salaries owed workers in federal universities of agriculture, ASUU said the intervention had not resolved the wider challenges facing academic staff.
It said lecturers continued to face uncertainty over when and how much of their salaries would be paid, with some allegedly forced to engage university authorities over salary delays.
ASUU, however, commended Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, for publicly announcing the full adoption of the 2025 agreement and apologising over bureaucratic bottlenecks that had caused delays and distortions in its implementation.
The union also commended Bauchi, Ekiti, Ogun, Benue, Yobe, Adamawa, Kebbi, Katsina and Borno states, where it said implementation of the agreement had commenced.
It added that Kano, Edo, Plateau, Taraba, Gombe and Bayelsa states had pledged to commence implementation in September or October.
ASUU warned governors yet to implement the agreement that continued failure to do so could plunge their respective state-owned universities into an “industrial crisis of monumental proportions.”
Osun VC Tenure Extension
The union also criticised Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, over the two-year extension granted to the Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University, Prof. Clement Adegbooye.
Adeleke had on September 1 announced the extension of Adegbooye’s tenure from January 2027 to January 2029 during the inauguration of the university’s reconstituted Governing Council.
ASUU described the decision as unacceptable, arguing that the law governing the appointment provides for a single five-year tenure without extension.
The union alleged that the governor hurriedly amended the law to accommodate the extension, warning that the move could undermine university autonomy and create a dangerous precedent for other state universities.
It also criticised Adegbooye for accepting the extension, noting his previous involvement with ASUU as a branch secretary at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
The union urged the vice-chancellor to reconsider the decision before January 2027, when it said his legally recognised tenure would expire.
ASUU warned that it would challenge the development if efforts to reverse the decision failed.
ASUU Rejects Government’s Economic Claims
The union also criticised the Federal and state governments over the state of the economy, arguing that reported macroeconomic improvements had not translated into better living conditions for Nigerians.
ASUU said Nigerians continued to face declining purchasing power, rising living costs and inadequate access to healthcare, education, electricity, potable water and good roads.
It described the situation as “growth without development” and endorsed the call by Nigeria Labour Congress President, Joe Ajaero, for an immediate review of the national minimum wage.
The union proposed that the minimum wage should be indexed to inflation to protect workers’ purchasing power and automatically reflect changes in the cost of living.
‘Don’t Blame Us If Universities Shut Down’
ASUU insisted that its warning was not intended to deliberately disrupt the academic calendar but was driven by what it described as an urgent need to resolve issues threatening the welfare of lecturers.
It appealed to students, parents, labour leaders, media organisations and other Nigerians to pressure the government to address the outstanding issues before the situation escalates.
“In no mistaken terms, ASUU posits that the non- or haphazard implementation of the 2025 FGN-ASUU Agreement by federal and state governments is a recipe for industrial crisis in Nigeria’s public universities,” the union said.
“In the same vein, withholding the three-and-half months’ salaries and third-party deductions by the government is an ill-wind for lasting peace on our campuses.”
The union ultimately warned that it could resume its suspended strike without issuing another notice if the government fails to act.
“ASUU-NEC resolved to notify all concerned that the Union may activate its suspended strike action without any further notice if the critical issues raised in this release are not speedily addressed,” it said.