Over 1,000 lecturers at Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, have staged a protest over the non-payment of their salaries for the past five years.
The affected lecturers revealed that 12 of their colleagues, employed during the same period, have died while waiting for their wages.
Carrying placards, the lecturers pleaded for immediate payment, stressing that the current economic hardship has worsened their plight and that of their families.
One of the lecturers, Ibezim Echezona, lamented the loss of their colleagues due to financial struggles, stating, “We have buried 12 members, including one who was alive just last December. We need answers—who is holding our salaries, the university or the federal government?”
Chukwuebuka Emmanuel, a blind lecturer at the Center for Disabilities and Special Needs Research, said he has not received any remuneration since his employment in 2019, despite working diligently.
He recounted how promises to resolve the issue, including approvals from the previous Governing Council, have yielded no results.
“We were initially told the issue was with the IPPIS, but even after approval, nothing changed. As a family man, I struggle to provide for my wife and children. I owe my landlord, and I don’t know what to tell my kids when they ask for school fees,” he lamented.
The lecturers called on the federal government, the Ministry of Education, and the university management to clarify who is responsible for withholding their salaries and to take immediate action.
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