Unmet Demands: ASUU Declares 14-day Ultimatum, Threatens Strike

Kuni Tyessi and Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

In the face of an imminent strike action, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has issued a 14-day ultimatum to the federal government over lingering issues affecting the nation’s universities.

The union, in a statement issued at the end of its National Executive Council, NEC, meeting held at the University of Abuja on Sunday, September 28, 2025, decried what it described as the government’s consistent neglect of public universities and the welfare of academic staff.

ASUU President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, who signed the statement, recalled the union had in August, staged rallies across federal and state universities to draw attention to the plight of the system, but lamented that the efforts yielded no meaningful response from the government.

According to him, if the federal government fails to act within the ultimatum, ASUU will first embark on a two-week warning strike, after which it may proceed on a total and indefinite shutdown of universities nationwide.

The union listed its demands to include: Renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement; Sustainable funding of universities; Revitalisation of public universities and an end to the victimisation of its members at LASU, Prince Abubakar Audu University, and FUTO.

Others are: Payment of outstanding 25–35% salary arrears; Resolution of delayed promotion arrears spanning over four years and settlement of outstanding third-party deductions.

Prof. Piwuna maintained the issues raised were not new, while appealing for intervention by traditional rulers and well-meaning Nigerians to help resolve the issues and to prevent the looming strike, saying he believes the federal government has the financial capacity to address the challenges facing the education sector.