The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened to resume its suspended nationwide strike if the Federal Government and state governments fail to address outstanding issues affecting university lecturers urgently.
The union said the proposed strike would follow the resolution of its National Executive Council at an emergency meeting held on September 5, 2026, in Abuja.
In a statement issued on Friday by the ASUU President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, the union accused the Federal Government and several state governments of failing to fully implement the December 2025 agreement reached with the union after years of negotiations.
ASUU said other unresolved issues included the three-and-a-half months’ salaries withheld from lecturers, unremitted third-party deductions, alleged violations of university laws and autonomy, and the deteriorating condition of the academic profession.
The union said that apart from recent efforts by the Federal Ministry of Education to clear outstanding salaries owed lecturers in Federal Universities of Agriculture, there had been no sustained action to resolve the problems.
It added that lecturers were being forced to engage in monthly disputes with university authorities over uncertainty about when and how much of their salaries would be paid.
‘Unless immediate and concrete steps are taken to fully and comprehensively address issues bordering the welfare and well-being of Nigerian academics, ASUU-NEC will not accept any blame for calling out its members on a nationwide strike action within the shortest time possible,’ the statement said.
The union, however, commended governors who had commenced implementation of the 2025 agreement in their state-owned universities.
It specifically praised the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, for publicly announcing the full adoption of the agreement and apologising to the union over bureaucratic bottlenecks that caused delays and distortions in its implementation.
ASUU also listed Bauchi, Ekiti, Ogun, Benue, Yobe, Adamawa, Kebbi, Katsina and Borno among states where implementation had commenced.
It said Kano, Edo, Plateau, Taraba, Gombe and Bayelsa had pledged to commence implementation in September or October.
The union urged other governors to follow suit, warning that failure to do so could plunge state-owned universities into industrial crises.
ASUU said authorities of affected universities had been notified of the planned commencement of strike actions in their respective institutions, with the backing of the union’s national leadership, unless satisfactory progress was recorded.
The union also condemned the decision by the Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, to extend the tenure of the Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University, Prof. Clement Adebooye, by two years.
Adeleke had announced the extension on September 1 during the inauguration of the university’s reconstituted Governing Council.
According to ASUU, Adebooye’s tenure, which should end in January 2027, would now run until January 2029.
The union argued that the Osun State University Law, under which the Vice-Chancellor was appointed, provides for a single five-year tenure and does not allow for an extension.
ASUU described the move as a bad precedent that could undermine the provisions of the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Act, 2012, which was introduced partly to prevent controversies associated with tenure extensions and renewals for vice-chancellors.
The union also criticised Adebooye for accepting the extension, noting that he had previously served as a branch secretary of ASUU at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
It urged him to reconsider the decision before the expiration of his legally recognised tenure in January 2027.
The union warned that it would challenge the decision if the matter was not resolved, saying the development could set a precedent for other governors to place political considerations above legal and ethical standards.
On withheld salaries, ASUU said nothing had changed regarding the outstanding three-and-a-half months owed lecturers out of the seven-and-a-half months withheld by the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The union acknowledged President Bola Tinubu’s payment of four months’ salaries but said the unpaid balance remained a source of financial and psychological hardship for its members.
ASUU said the value of the outstanding salaries had also been eroded by more than 50 per cent following the devaluation of the naira since 2022.
It urged the Federal Government to release the outstanding salaries to restore lecturers’ confidence in the university system.
The union also raised concerns over billions of naira deducted from lecturers’ salaries for pension contributions, cooperative societies and union check-off dues but allegedly not remitted appropriately for several months.
It accused the government of failing to resolve the issue of third-party deductions despite several engagements.
ASUU alleged that the withholding of the funds could be connected to its rejection of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System.
The union warned that it was prepared to mobilise its members for industrial action if the deductions were not addressed.
The union also expressed concern that the commencement of political campaigns ahead of the 2027 general elections could shift government attention away from workers’ welfare and other governance issues.
It supported the call by the Nigeria Labour Congress President, Joe Ajaero, for an immediate review of the national minimum wage, arguing that workers’ purchasing power had been severely weakened by rising inflation.
ASUU also advocated the indexing of the minimum wage to inflation to provide workers with predictable adjustments in response to rising living costs.
The union said the poor or inconsistent implementation of the 2025 agreement, unpaid salaries and unremitted deductions could trigger another crisis in Nigeria’s public universities.
It appealed to students, parents, labour leaders, media practitioners and other Nigerians to intervene before the situation deteriorated.
ASUU said it could not guarantee an uninterrupted academic calendar at the expense of the welfare and survival of its members.
The union said its NEC had resolved to notify all stakeholders that it could activate its suspended strike without further notice if the issues were not urgently resolved.
‘However, Nigerians should not blame ASUU if we are forced to resume the suspended action on account of no satisfactory response from government,’ the union said.