News Investigators/ The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Abuja chapter, on Tuesday joined its counterparts nationwide in a peaceful protest demanding an improved salary structure and outstanding welfare payments.
The union also called for the full implementation of previous agreements reached with the Federal Government, which it said had been neglected for years.
The protest, held within the university campus, saw members carrying placards with various inscriptions, expressing their dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of academic staff welfare.
They urged the government to honour commitments made as far back as 2009 and to prioritise the needs of academic staff across Nigerian universities
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that union members marched within the university premises carrying placards with inscriptions such as: “What is good for the politicians is good for the people,” and “Release third-party deductions.”
Other placards read: “We demand a salary increase, not loans.”
ASUU Chairman, University of Abuja chapter, Sylvanus Ugoh, said staff had remained on the same salary structure since 2009 in spite of repeated promises.
He explained that the 2009 agreement mandated a salary review every three years, which should have started in 2012.
He, however, said the renegotiation process only began in 2017 and has been concluded.
Mr Ugoh said the final report was submitted in February 2025 but remained unsigned.
“We want the government and the public to understand the hardship we’re facing,” he told journalists during the protest on campus.
He urged the Federal Government to implement the recommendations of the Alhaji Yayale Ahmed-led committee, warning that the academic system was collapsing and members were struggling to survive amid rising living costs.
“Our members are dying in increasing numbers, 90 per cent of those deaths are stress-related.
“No nation can grow beyond the strength and quality of its university education system,” Ugoh said.
Ugoh added that ASUU had been patient with the current administration for two years, expecting action on low-hanging issues.
“We’ve seen no movement. Promises have been made, but none fulfilled,” he stated.
He also rejected the government’s proposed loan arrangements, stressing that what the union needed was payment of entitlements, not credit offers that members might not be able to repay.
“We don’t need loans. Pay us our three and a half months’ withheld salaries, promotion arrears, and the 25 per cent and 35 per cent wage awards.
“After that, we can discuss other options if needed.”
Ugoh further urged the government to uphold university autonomy and allow institutions to operate independently.
“Revitalising our universities requires academic freedom and respect for the extant laws.
“Let the universities function without interference. If we truly want economic, scientific, and technological development, we must begin by empowering our university system,” he added.
(NAN)
