Hold FG Responsible for Any Strike in Varsities, NAAT Warns

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) has said that federal government is pushing the university workers into embarking on industrial action by ignoring their plea to reconvene and promptly conclude renegotiation of FGN/NAAT 2009 Agreement.

In a statement signed by president of NAAT, Comrade Ibeji Nwokoma the union urged well-meaning Nigerians, clergy, civil society, the Nigeria Labour Congress, students, and parents to prevail on the federal government to reconvene promptly and conclude renegotiations honorably.

The statement issued at the end of its 62nd National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held on Thursday, at the National Secretariat Complex, Yakubu Gowon University (formerly University of Abuja), said: “Aside from this, the government bears responsibility for impending academic disruptions and loss of institutional peace”.

NAAT noted that one of its major concerns was a letter dated March 30, 2026 from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service to the Salaries, Income, and Wages Commission—approving a 30% allowance increase for non-teaching staff.

It said that the letter was issued without NAAT’s concluding renegotiation agreement with the federal government, adding that, “the action undermines the renegotiation process, violates collective bargaining principles, and fosters wage disparities”.

The union said it rejected the award and will resist it through all legal means, thwarting any divide-and-rule strategy.

NEC rejected the committee’s paltry offer from March 31, 2026, at the National Universities Commission. This offer fails to address economic realities, including soaring costs of premium motor spirit (PMS), cooking gas, and electricity.

“NAAT urges well-meaning Nigerians, clergy, civil society, the Nigeria Labour Congress, students, and parents to press the FGN to reconvene promptly and conclude renegotiations honorably. Aside this, the government bears responsibility for impending academic disruptions and loss of institutional peace,” it said

NAAT had engaged the federal government since 2017 via multiple committees to renegotiate the FGN/NAAT 2009 Agreement, originally due for review in 2012 per its three-year cycle.

This process, spanning nine years, has involved Dr. B. O. Babalakin, SAN, OFR (2017); Professor Munzali Jibril (2020); the late Professor Nimi Briggs (2022); and the current committee under Alhaji Mahmud Yayale Ahmed (inaugurated 2024).

NAAT said that the Yayale Ahmed Committee has demonstrated commitment, as evidenced by agreements signed with other tertiary unions.